#even just thinking about going from place to place looking at potential new living spaces makes me want to cry

[witchywcmans]

NEEDY. | AKI HAYAKAWA

synopsis ━━ you were in need of a roommate, and aki hayakawa needed a place that wouldn't ask any questions. you went to work during the day, while aki worked late nights. you basically had the apartment to yourself. it was honestly a match made in heaven. but then, you just had to come home one day and catch your roommate in a precarious situation. (aki x f!reader.)

content warnings ━━ voyeurism (just a wee bit), sex-deprived aki 🫶, but also possessive + jealous aki, masturbation, dirty thoughts + wet dreams, fingering, praise, multiple orgasms, classic missionary, unprotected sex, creampie, mutual pining/confession, kinda au (we're not mentioning the gun devil arc), aki has lived to see 26 + reader being a similar age, some religious imagery. nsfw (minors + ageless blogs dni).

word count ━━ 5.1k

song inspiration ━━ dealer, lana del rey / friends, chase atlantic / double fantasy, the weeknd

author's note ━━ hi.....hello.........so this idea has been in my head for a little bit, and I realize roommate aus like this are simply not that original, but god dammit I just needed to get this out of my head. anyway, I lurrrrrv sex deprived aki. shout out to my friend hollis for screaming about this with me hehe 💓

The most words you had ever said to your roommate were on the day you interviewed him before he moved in. You immediately noticed that he was strange, but also shy and seemingly harmless. When you had asked why he needed to move in so quickly, he had said something along the lines of a “toxic environment” with his previous roommates: “Denji and Power are just too noisy and reckless. They’re four years younger than me. I need a place less chaotic.” You had been interested in getting to know more – you were curious, after all, about your potential roomie – but once he mentioned that you’d probably never see him because he worked nights, you were sold.

Aki Hayakawa was your new roommate.

He had never been more excited to finally get away from Denji and Power and the tumultuous mess they had turned his apartment into. He was older now; he needed something for himself, even if it was with a roommate. Being a Public Safety Devil Hunter, he needed a place that didn’t think twice about him, a roommate who didn’t ask questions. That’s what he liked about you: your place was on the right side of the city, and you looked at him like he was normal. The Fox Devil said you weren’t going to be good for him, but Aki tended to ignore them anyway.

You had helped him move into your second bedroom just a week later and he hardly said a word, except to ask you who had formerly occupied this space. You were hesitant to talk about it at first, but you cracked soon enough: “My old best friend lived in here. We had rented this place together, but we … aren’t exactly speaking anymore,” you admitted, setting a box down at his feet. “I came home from work one evening and found my boyfriend cheating on me with her. It had been going on for months, right under my nose.” You looked away when you felt your eyes start to sting with tears, sniffling them away. “Friends come and go, I guess. But I’m thankful you, at least, worked out to rent this space.”

“Well,” he sighed, opening up the box as you turned back to him. He smirked. “I promise I won’t sleep with your boyfriend.”

You had laughed, and what a pretty sound it was. After move-in day, Aki was true to his word that you almost never saw him. You worked a normal 9 to 5, while Aki … well, you had no idea what Aki did. You assumed he was a security guard or something with the hours he worked and how he was always wearing a suit and tie. He was working all the time, even weekends. Sometimes, you would catch him coming home as you were leaving for work, or on Sunday morning as you ate breakfast in the kitchen. He would be too tired to talk, simply waving at you before retiring to his room.

It was almost like living alone … except for notes he’d sometimes leave you on the stove or the bathroom. Or the weekend mornings, when he’d get you a coffee and leave it out for you before going to his room. Or the once-in-a-blue-moon nights when you’d stumble in the early hours of the morning after drinking in the city with some friends, standing out on the deck with Aki as he smoked a cigarette. Nights like those, you could’ve sworn Fate was trying to get you two to see each other, because you would be arriving home at just the right hour and Aki would be getting off work early. And you would find him on the deck in his suit and tie, cigarette hanging from his lips, hair pulled up in his classic topknot. He would find you leaning against the railing in nothing but a short dress, the glitter on your lids making your eyes sparkle even more, and – god, you were just so pretty.

After that night, he started dreaming about you. He dreamed about how your lips would feel against his, what it would be like to have you sleep next to him and rest your head on his chest. He was consumed by thoughts of you under him, how you tasted, the way you’d tremble if he kissed that sensitive part of your neck you told him about one late night on the deck. His need for you was insatiable. In his line of work, there wasn’t much time for dating, let alone sex. He hadn’t been thinking about it that much, especially when he’d been housing Denji and Power, but now … he couldn’t stop thinking about you. Naked. Underneath him. On top. God dammit, he’d have you any way you wanted.

It made him wish he had acted on his instincts that night on the deck: pushing you against the sliding door, his lips crashing onto yours, hiking your skirt up that just barely covered your thighs and using his non-dominant hand (the one that didn’t shake) to feel how wet you were. But alas, Aki Hayakawa was a gentleman. 

You two had been living together for a year. He hardly knew you, but also knew you like nobody else did. He knew how you took your coffee – black with two sugars. He knew the brand of toilet paper you liked. He knew that you liked to hang your coats in the closet on the right side. He knew you drooled in your sleep, and what TV shows made you laugh, and how much your water bill was each month.

He was acting out in ways that were unlike him. If he came home from work and saw you had a guy over, he made his presence known. When you were at the office, sometimes he would go to your room just to smell your perfume, and other times he would steal your panties. (He always gave them back, feeling too shameful. But he did keep one underneath his pillow.) Some nights, he would pretend to leave for work early and you would retire to your room for the night, and then he would hear the familiar sound of your vibrator and – fuck, he had to go to work hard. Again. 

You were taking up too much space in his head. He was becoming distracted at work, thinking about what you were doing during these late hours. Maybe the Fox Devil was right: you weren’t good for him.

But he wasn’t moving out any time soon.

It was a Thursday after work and you were completely exhausted. After attending endless meetings and having to argue with coworkers all day, you left work early and were grateful to have a night alone with some leftovers from the night before. You had completely forgotten Aki telling you earlier in the week that he had this Thursday and Friday off, your mind preoccupied with work responsibilities. Sighing as soon as you walked through the door, you set your bag down and shuffled out of your shoes. You shut the door softly, at peace with the silence. You didn’t even have the energy to get out of your work clothes; you simply padded your feet to the fridge, plucking your leftovers out. It was only when you reached up to the microwave that you noticed the apartment wasn’t as silent as you assumed.

Sounds emanated from another room.

You got on your tip-toes, not wanting to make much noise if there was an intruder, and felt for the pocket knife you always kept on your person. Passing by your bedroom first, you popped your head inside. Empty. Hadn’t been touched since you left this morning. The bathroom was next, and you held your breath as the sounds got even more noticeable. You peeked into the bathroom and … clear. Linen closet: clear. Coat closet: clear. But the sounds only became more clear as you got closer to the end of the hall, Aki’s room, and –

You stopped in front of Aki’s bedroom, the door cracked just enough that you didn’t need to pop your head in to see what was happening. Aki was home, for once, and you … you were watching him through the crack in the door. But how could you not? You knew where the sounds were coming from now, because Aki was the one making them.

His dark hair swept in front of his eyes as he sat back against his pillows. He wore a white t-shirt, while his boxers bagged around his ankles. Grunts slipped from his mouth – that pretty, pretty mouth you'd seen wrapped around a cigarette. And his hand … his hand wrapped around his cock, pumping furiously – desperately – with a pair of your panties enveloping the head. The same red lace panties you thought you’d lost months ago. 

You almost considered walking away, making noise in the kitchen so he would know you were home, but then –

Then, your name left his mouth in a whimper.

He was stroking himself even faster, muttering your name into the silent room with your panties wrapped so nicely around his cock. He was thinking about you, wanting so desperately cum in your panties, wondering if you thought about him when you used your vibrator. You were frozen in place, completely fixated on him as he leaned back against his headboard, his face finally exposed so you could see the way his jaw went slack, the way he moaned out your name. And – oh my god, you should leave –

But you couldn’t. And deep down, you knew there was a dirty part of you that always wanted to see this. Ever since that night on the deck, when you were wearing your favorite dress and all that glitter, and you noticed that he was looking at you in a way a platonic roommate definitely shouldn’t. You had started to think about him late nights when you were alone with your toy. You brought home dates, wanting him to see, giggling when you recognized his jealous expression. You tried to wake up earlier, just to see him when he stumbled through the door. Once, you even did his laundry to smell the nicotine on his jacket. 

The two of you simply couldn’t help yourselves.

And when you watched him finally reach his peak, spilling into your forgotten red lace panties, you realized just how wet the ones you were wearing had become. You watched him grunt as he came, breathing heavily and wiping the sweat off his brow. And when he muttered under his breath a soft, “Fuck,” you couldn’t help the short gasp that left your lips.

Aki stalled. Oh, shit. You hadn’t been quiet enough. He sat up more in his bed, pulling his boxers up, and you whipped your back against the wall. You cupped your hand over your mouth, praying he wouldn’t come out and see. But he was whispering, “Who’s there?” And you only had enough time to move ten feet down the hall before you heard the creak of his soles on the old floorboards.

“Fuck,” he muttered, louder this time.

Your back went straight, and after what felt like an eternity, you slowly turned to face him. “Aki,” you put your hands up in surrender, “I didn’t see anything –”

“Oh, what the fuck,” he shook his head at himself, quickly walking back into his bedroom. You were stunned, not knowing what to do, as he continued talking to himself in the room: “Stupid fucking idiot not closing the fucking door. What the fuck? What the fuck? My worst fucking nightmare. Fuck, why do these pants always get caught around my ankles? I need to get out of here. Stay at Denji’s for the night. Fuck, fuck, fuck –”

He emerged from his bedroom, now wearing jeans, his favorite Converse, and a leather jacket. He tried to pass you without looking, whispering obscenities under his breath, but then you were tugging on his jacket, lips pressed together.

Aki paused, cheeks red with both embarrassment and anger at himself, but you didn’t let go of his sleeve. He noticed the redness of your face as well, the black of your pupils almost covering your entire eye, and were you … were you aroused?

Swallowing hard, your voice was but a mere whisper when you asked, “How long have you had those?”

He knew what you were referring to. It didn’t take an idiot. Your stares were locked, and despite his shame, he wouldn’t turn away. “A while,” he mumbled.

“How long is ‘a while?’”

“Months, okay?” His eyes narrowed and his voice took on a new tone. “Now, can you let go of my jacket so I can leave and save us both the embarrassment –”

“Months,” you repeated, licking the corners of your lips. His eyes were made of blue fire as he stared down at you, and even with your office attire on, you felt utterly naked beneath his gaze. “I’ve … I’ve been thinking about you for months too.”

Aki took a moment to process your words, and your grip hesitantly released on his sleeve. But he wasn’t – he couldn’t – let you get away so easily. His breath was shaky as he placed both of his hands on the wall behind you, pinning you to it. So many times had you two passed each other in this hallway, so many words left unsaid. And now, he was pressing you against it.

“You’ve been thinking about me … for months,” he thought out loud, leaning in a little and nosing your hair. Your scent was intoxicating. That perfume … he could cum in his pants just from smelling it. “For months, you’ve been bringing guys to the apartment to … to what? Make me jealous?” He chuckled under his breath. It took him so long to put it together. “For months, you’ve been touching yourself right before I leave so I go to work fucking hard.” His nose traveled down to your neck, grazing that spot you told him about, and you shuddered. “You’ve been putting me through the wringer and I didn’t even have a clue.”

“You’re … you’re not so innocent.” You tried to keep yourself together, but it was difficult with him pinning you to the wall and – oh, he was already hard in his pants, pressing into you.  “You’ve been stealing my panties so you can masturbate with them.”

Aki hummed quietly, pressing his lips so delicately to your neck, as if his cock wasn’t completely strained in his jeans. “I supposed I have,” he whispered against your skin, “for months.”

“Since that night on the deck,” you croaked out, hands balling into fists as he licked a stripe up your neck. If he didn’t stop, you’d surely moan. “But I didn’t say anything – didn’t think about saying anything – because … because we’re roommates.”

“We are roommates,” he said, lifting his head from your neck, his lips hovering so close to yours. “And if we’re just stating facts here, I’ve needed to kiss you since that night.”

You didn’t wait for him. Immediately leaning in, your lips pressed onto his in a hungry kiss. His mouth molded to yours, and he tasted exactly like you thought: like black coffee, cigarettes, those raspberry pastries he always kept in the kitchen. His tongue, slipping into your mouth, tangled with yours in a way that you had only dreamed about. Your hands released from their fists, instead reaching up to twist in his t-shirt, bringing him even closer to you. He’d hardly touched you and you were completely, utterly soaked. 

As if hearing your thoughts, his lips broke from yours for just a moment to beg, “I need to touch you.”

“Please,” you whispered back, and his mouth was back on yours.

He dragged one hand down from the wall (his shaky hand, believe it or not), still pressing you against it, and worked on unzipping your trousers. You nuzzled your nose against his as he kissed you deeply, slipping his hand in your pants, past the waistband of your panties and – you were exactly as he dreamed you’d be. Absolutely wet. Just as needy for him as he was for you. “Fuck,” he muttered into the kiss, spreading your soaked folds with two long fingers. 

Your lips tore away from his, a trail of spit following, because you simply had to release the moan you’d been holding in for so long. Despite loving the way your mouth fitted against his, he was glad for it, wanting to see your face when he started rubbing your sensitive clit. And fuck, was it the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. Your fists on his t-shirt went loose as your body felt like it was made of liquid, angling into his. Your lips pursed, soft whimpers filtering out as he rubbed you in those tight circles.

“So fucking wet f’me,” he mumbled, grazing his lips over yours. “Dreamed about this for months. Fuck, I’ve gotten hard just thinking about this pussy.”

He finally dipped a single finger inside you, and your hips immediately jerked against his hand. Aki let out a shuddering breath when he felt how much you were squeezing just one finger, pumping it in and out of you slowly. “Please,” you whispered, despite his thoughts, “I can take more. I promise.”

You didn’t need to ask him twice. He shoved two fingers inside you, curling them against that spot that had your hips instantly bucking. “Fuck, Aki,” you whined as he plunged those fingers in and out of you, using his thumb to rub your clit. 

“Yeah?” He breathed. 

“Kiss me.”

Aki moaned from your words alone, kissing you hard while fucking you with his long fingers. He was practically drunk on you: your scent wrapped around him, you tasted like citrus, and the way bucked into his hand … god, he needed to fuck you. So bad. And if you didn’t want that, then he needed to jerk himself off immediately or else he was going to explode in his pants. The last thing he needed was another embarrassing moment tonight.

It only took seconds to have you sighing into the kiss, squeezing his fingers like a vice as you came. His thumb on your clit was relentless, taking you over that lovely peak, as you mewled and cried into his mouth. It was almost religious, the way you moaned, and Aki had never felt closer to God than in this moment.

When the adrenaline subsided, he slowly removed his fingers from you and broke the kiss. You watched him intensely as he brought the fingers covered in your slick to his mouth, tasting you. Your lips fell open slightly, eyes going wide while his own closed, savoring the taste. What the actual fuck, you thought to yourself. How the fuck have we been living under the same roof and it took this long for me to see that?

Without missing a beat, you pushed yourself off the wall, winding your arms around his neck and latching your legs to his waist. He lifted you as if you were made of air, kissing you so that you could taste yourself. Before you could even perceive how much time had passed, you were on his bed, blouse disheveled and trousers undone. Even your hair hadn’t left the updo you put it in every weekday. Your eyes flickered to the right and you giggled to yourself. He had finally shut the door.

His eyes remained on you as he shrugged off his jacket, and then his pants. He was back in the same outfit you saw him in earlier, when your panties had been wrapped around his cock like a birthday present. He hesitated before finally pulling off his shirt, and you saw the scars lining parts of his chest. Definitely not a security guard, you thought to yourself but decided not to ask about it now. You reached up as he stood between your legs, brushing your fingers over the scars, and then dragged them down his abdomen. His frame was thin, but he was more built than you believed, always hiding himself under those oversized button-ups.

He wrapped his hand around your wrist as you touched him so gracefully. “Do you want to …?” His voice was so soft, the question hanging off the edge of his tongue.

And then, you smiled up at him, looking like an angel. “Yes, Aki,” you whispered.

He felt like a kid in a candy store. The only thing – the one person – he’d been dreaming about and looked at him as if he weren’t a machine, or a gun with the trigger pulled, was lying before him and liked him. For months, they’d both said. His dominant hand was shaking as he started unbuttoning your blouse, and when you noticed (though you had observed this the day he moved in), you grabbed his hand and placed it on your cheek. With his left hand and your right, you worked together to undo the buttons until your chest was exposed for him. 

Moonlight streamed through his bedroom, the only light source in a seemingly dark area.  City lights reflected on you as you pulled your hair free from the updo, those pretty strands fanning on his sheets. His sheets. Because you were in his bed. The blinking lights from corporate buildings outside your little apartment created a halo around your head and – fuck, you really were something religious. For so long, Aki thought only hell existed. I mean, all the Devils were here, contracted to them. But seeing you splayed out so heavenly for him on his bed, he knew then that Angels had to exist too. 

He took his time taking your pants off, watching the way you bit your lip when the cold air of his room hit your soaked panties. Your eyes glanced up to his boxers, seeing the indent of his long, thick cock, and your mouth went dry. His fingers hooked on the waistband of your panties, slowly dragging down and throwing them off to the side, hoping you’d forget about them so he could pocket another pair. With you exposed and bare on his bed, he really took a moment to admire you: the way your cheeks flushed, how the halo around your head flickered, the way your arousal seeped out of your pretty pussy and your nipples peaked. He just had to touch you; it would kill him if he didn’t. Leaning down, he began peppering kisses on your neck, your collarbone, before finally latching his lips around one of those sensitive nipples. Your breath stuttered at the sensation, and he used his left hand to palm your other breast, twisting the nipple between two fingers. You writhed under him, and he couldn’t help but grind his clothed cock against you, groaning and swirling his tongue around your nipple in tandem. Locking your legs around his waist, you held him to you so he was forced to keep grinding against you. It felt too good, and he wasn’t even inside you yet.

He tugged on your nipple and released it, breathing heavily as his eyes met yours. “If you don’t let me go, I’m definitely going to cum before I’m even inside you.”

“Poor Aki,” you giggled, letting your legs fall back on the bed. “Would that really be so bad?”

His eyes were burning into yours, serious as a heart attack. “I’ve been fucking my hand to the thought of you for what feels like forever,” he whispered, pressing a light kiss to the valley between your breasts. “I don’t want to ruin this moment.”

Aki moved up so that his lips were hovering over yours again, and he could really see the sparkle of your irises in the moonlight. You reached in between your bodies and gingerly massaged his bulge, feeling how much he’d already soaked his boxers with precum. “You couldn’t ruin anything even if you tried,” you replied, your voice light and airy. “I’m on the pill. I’m ready when you are.”

“Shit,” he groaned at your mention of being on the pill, trembling as you massaged him. This had to be another one of his dreams. Just the thought of being inside you without the barrier of a condom … he was so close to completely exploding. He didn’t deserve this, didn’t deserve you, after all the hell he’d witnessed and brought forth into this world. But he couldn’t help himself. He needed to have you, roommates be damned.

He stood up, needing to get away from your gentle hand. You sat up a little to help him tug down his boxers, careful of that shaky hand of his, and his cock sprang free, dripping precum on the floor. Aki, ever the gentleman, laid you back down on his bed with ease, holding your stare as he spread your legs wide for him. He breathed, praying to whatever god placed you in front of him that he wouldn’t cum prematurely. He couldn't remember the last time he had sex, but he was so desperate for you that all he cared about was not tainting this moment, this dream. 

Aki grasped his cock, giving it a few hard pumps and grunting, before positioning himself at your entrance. You both seemed to hold your breath as he finally slid in, just an inch at first, and the two of you seemed to release that shaky, nervous breath. “Oh, fuck,” he groaned, burying himself further in your tight warmth, bracing his elbows beside your head. 

“Keep going,” you begged. “It’ll fit, Aki. Promise.”

You were going to kill him, he was sure of it. Aki had felt the way you squeezed his fingers, but it was nothing compared to pleasure of being inside you, feeling how tight you really were. So much better than his hand. Once he was fully seated inside you, he opened his eyes just to look into yours. Your lips pursed, legs wrapping around his waist once again, and you slowly nodded for him to continue. His cock twitched.

“You’re going to be the death of me,” he muttered, sliding out of you before slamming back in. You cried out, carding your fingers in his hair, and he molded his face in the crook of your neck to muffle his own whimpers. You just felt so, so good – so good that he could cry. To think that his bed had once been so cold, so lonely, but now you were occupying the space, trembling underneath him as his cock slipped in and out of you. 

Your moans were like gospel. For so long, Aki had been used to loud noise: to Denji’s complaints, to Power’s shouting, to the Devils’ in his ear. But now, it was just you two on the altar of your apartment, silent except for your heavy breaths mingling and the sound of car horns outside. You were wet and slick like holy water, taking him so nicely despite his size, and god – it was like you were made for him and he was made for you. 

You tugged on his hair, needing him so badly even though he was already yours to begin with. He really would have you any way you wanted. All you had to do was ask.

Aki was already so close to release, but he needed you to cum with him. As he fucked into you harder, deeper, his cock curving against that spot that made your eyes roll back, he reached in between you two and found that swollen bundle of nerves in the apex of your thighs. “Aki,” you whined, tears pricking at your eyes as he rubbed your clit. He could die happily now that he heard your voice like that in his ear, knowing it was him that made it happen.

“Yes?” He said, breathless, placing sloppy kisses on your jaw. You clung to him, melting into him like ice cream on a hot summer’s day. “I’m so close. Are you close, angel?”

You whimpered at the nickname. “Almost.”

“Almost?” He fingers went a little faster. “Let’s get you there.”

As his two fingers rubbed tight, small circles on your clit, he angled his cock inside of you so that he could brush your G-spot with every thrust. You were now clutching onto him with all the strength you had left, entwining your body with his and feeling his muscles flex against your stomach. He was so deep now and you were so close and oh my god, Aki Hayakawa had you like putty in his hands.

And it was like he knew it without you even saying it. Because as your walls started to clench around him, he whispered into your ear. “Cum for me, angel. Please, please, need to cum with you.”

Your body convulsed, going tight around his cock as you came. Tears streamed down your cheeks and you called out his name, spurring him to fuck into you faster, reaching his own peak in the middle of yours. He groaned deep into your neck, hips stuttering as he spilled himself inside of you. You kept your legs around his waist, not wanting to miss a drop, and arched yourself against him, coming down from the high of your intense orgasm. Aki was still rubbing your clit slowly, whispering praises into your skin like, “Did so good me … So pretty … Could listen to you cum for hours.”

You two laid like that for a while, feeling his cock soften inside you, panting heavily against each other. Once he finally pulled out of you, your combined releases dripping down your thighs, you laid beside each other on his bed and stared at the ceiling. The silence was comforting, until he whispered, “Please, tell me that wasn’t all a dream.”

Turning your head, you smiled at him. “Do you feel this?” You pinched his arm.

Aki flinched. “Ow.”

“Definitely not a dream,” you chuckled.

[drunk-fantasies]

the three of us

+18 content, minors dni

bf!jake x fem!reader x heeseung / 2,1k words - sorry / threesome with a hint of cuckolding (a huge hint if i’m being honest), unprotected sex, piv, oral (f+m receiving) throat fucking, praising, degrading, spanking, swearing / note: me in my heejake brain rot era 😌 / mlist

explicit content under the cut!

first time jake mentioned he would like trying to have a threesome you didn’t think he meant one of his friends, especially heeseung. at first, when he told you about him being his candidate you hesitated for a while.

“it’s just a suggestion. i want both of us having pleasure from that, so just think about it, no pressure,” he would assure you one night when you spoke about your hesitation, but his words made you even more curious about what potential sex with the two of them could bring.

you couldn’t help but have trouble concentrating on anything else. your mind was preoccupied with various scenarios including your boyfriend and his friend. just mere thoughts about them destroying you from two sides made you wet, without any exaggeration.

“let’s try,” you announced one evening when you were already after your night routines, getting cozy on your bed. jake looked at you confused so you cleared up: “let’s try with heeseung.”

you saw temptation in his eyes and soon a smile replaced his expression. he raised slightly on his elbow to kiss you deeply.

“i promise you’re not gonna regret this, princess,” he said before cradling you securely in his arms laying kitten-like kisses on your forehead. you settled on what you wanted and what was categorically out of the question. nodding he made sure to remember all your conditions to let his friend know.

after a few days, when jake was preparing to go to work he told you he already talked with heeseung, telling you to pick a date whenever you like. not thinking twice you told him to invite him even today, curiosity eating you up inside what awaits you.

“are you that impatient or want to have it already done,” he laughed and brought you closer by your waist.

“maybe both?” you raised your eyebrows and climbed on your toes to kiss him.

he left for work after a while and told you to not miss him too much, which you couldn’t promise. there was no day you didn’t miss him. his touch, his smell, and his whole presence made you feel in heaven — secure and loved. and the thought of another man seeing you vulnerable made your insides do a flip, both from excitement and slight anxiousness. not being able to move your train of thought to other trails you couldn’t even get the tiniest bite on the food you previously prepared. looking at the wall clock became your new hobby at this point, waiting for the time jake ends his work. and around the hour of him being usually on his way home, you received a text from him.

jake 💗: i’m already on my way, but i think heeseung will be a little earlier. you don’t have to wait for me, babe ;)

you read the text and bit your bottom lip in anticipation. part of you wanted to wait for him, not wanting to do anything with his friend. partly because you were scared. after all, you haven’t had sex with anybody else than jake in years.

all your concerns seemed to fade away as soon as you opened the front door for him. he greeted you with the warmest smile and gave you an even warmer hug. in a blink of an eye, not sure how that happened, your lips were attached to each other as your hips grinded against his desperately. his hands first roamed all over your body, now placed on your waist, guiding your movements. in between sounds of your sloppy kisses few grunts and moans were audible in your living room leaving no space for doubts if this was a good idea. which was definitely not.

you slowly moved from his lap and he whined at the loss of friction only to smile against your lips when he felt his belt being unbuckled. he raised his hips to make it easier for you to take his pants and boxers off. tucking at its waistband you pulled them off in a swift motion, sitting in between his legs. his dick was already hard from your previous touch and leaked in a slick precum. you laid grazing kisses on his inner thigh and he parted his lips at your touch. not wasting any second you licked a stripe from his base to the tip earning a breathy moan from him. you left kitten licks on his reddened tip while keeping intense eye contact with him. your hands worked your way on his body, uncovering his abs from under his shirt.

“cut the teasing, pretty,” he said, his eyes piercing yours and made a makeshift ponytail, slightly pushing you down on his length. he watched attentively as your lips glided over his dick sending him on a cloud nine. “fuck– you’re doing so good for me,” he murmured his grip on your hair loosening.

he let his head fall back and the intense pleasure his friend’s girlfriend was giving him right now. his thigh tensed as your hands massaged his balls, feeling how close he was. he gently cupped your cheeks looking fondly at you only to add his other hand now throat fucking you at a merciless pace.

you closed your eyes and felt how tears brimmed in them, not realizing the front door was opening. both you and heeseung were preoccupied with him being pleasured too much to realize jake already came back home, now watching how much you too had fun with each other. he smiled as his eyes met the older one’s now discharging his clothes too.

you felt how your throat filled with heeseung’s hot load and bobbed your head a few times to ride his high.

“nice job, princess,” jake spoke and you turned around to look at him. he made his way to you and cupped your cheek, only to smear his friend’s cum all over your face and push it into your mouth. “now be our good slut and go on all fours.”

you nodded quickly and he pulled his digit out of your mouth. before you sat on the couch heeseung stopped you.

“are you going to take those off or should we do that for you?” he asked referring to your fully clothed body.

“maybe you should?” you teased making him smile and eye you up and down, now being so close to your face he could see the remaining cum left on your skin.

“heeseung.” jakes voice jolted him from trance. “be so kind and do it yourself,” he said sitting on the couch and pulled his dick out to give it a few pumps.

on the other hand, heeseung’s gaze came back to your’s and he took a few steps forward. you walked backward, eyes staying on his until the back of your legs met the edge of your couch, making you fall on it abruptly. he leaned down to tuck your hair behind your ear and kissed you deeply. the kiss was needy and all over the place. just when you wanted more he pulled away to tuck at your shorts. giving him a small nod seeing his asking look he pulled them down with ease, smiling at the absence of any underwear, your folds already wet begging for any contact.

“take off your shirt,” he murmured and you obediently took it off leaving you all naked in front of him. he ran his fingers through your folds and you shook under his touch. “already this wet?” he whispered straight into your ears, quietly enough for you to shiver, but loud enough for jake to hear. “what do you want me to do about it?”

his voice was ever so soft as if he was talking to the most precious thing in his life. you could feel hypnotized by the way it echoed in your head like a sweet charm. it made you want to do anything he told you to, do anything with you and your body.

“i want you to touch me,” you managed to gabble out almost incoherent words.

“with what should i touch you?” his continuous question and no actions made you crazy, especially now that his face was in between your legs, his hot breath reaching your sensitive bud.

“with your tongue, please.” he smiled at the sight of you squirming in front of his eyes, with him not having to do anything. he quickly glanced at jake about whom he almost forgot, but he only nodded, too immersed in the pleasure of both his hand around his cock and the scene that played in his living room.

he turned to you painfully slowly and spoke in a low voice: “be a good girl and spread your legs wide for me.”

as soon as you opened them revealing your glistening juices cunt his face sank in between your legs. you let out a loud gasp and soon wet sounds of his tongue against your folds were drowned out by your moans and whimpers. his nose was pressed against your clit while he hungrily explored your bud with his muscle. his fingers were spreading your folds for better access, now tracing them against your hole.

“heeseung!” you whined and your fingers tangled in his locks, bringing his face closer to your aching core.

you became silent for a quick moment when you felt his finger finally making its way to your hole pumping it in and out at perfect pace. you opened your mouth wide open, resting it on the headrest, your gaze falling on your boyfriend who intently watched your reactions with dark eyes. he smirked slightly at your already dumbly fucked up state, even though the toughest part was ahead of you. breathing loudly you felt how heeseung added a second finger, another wave of pleasure overwhelming your body. your eyes rolled to the back of your head as you felt the familiar knot forming in your stomach, soon coating heeseung’s face and fingers in your juices.

without giving you time to catch a breath you felt how somebody threw your form on their shoulder, carrying you to the bedroom. you fell on your bed and quickly positioned yourself on all fours, hands gripping the edge of your mattress. without a warning, you felt how your walls were being stretched by jake’s dick, who pounded into you at an animalistic pace. he left a few spanks on your ass before grasping your hair and pulling them making you raise your head. you noticed heeseung who now stood in front of you in his all glory, his dick proudly pointing at you. you opened your mouth to suck on it but instead, he leaned in pushing his tongue to your mouth now muffling your moans. jake kept on pounding his hips against yours, watching as your ass bounced with his every thrust, all while heeseung now explored your mouth with his tongue.

“fuck!” you exclaimed with immense pleasure as soon as your lips parted with his.

but he slowly shook his head in disapproval raising your head by your chin.

“what’s with that language, baby girl? don’t worry, i will give your mouth something to do.”

with those words, he pushed himself all at once and you gagged around him in surprise. he stayed like that for a moment, cockwarming himself against your throat. when he felt the vibrations of your moans he couldn’t help himself anymore and grabbed your head to fuck it once again.

both jake and heeseung filled your holes with their cocks making your eye roll backward with their every thrust, sending you on the edge. you could feel how jake’s balls kept on hitting your reddened clit, when your lips slid along every vein on heeseung’s dick. you loved it, you enjoyed every minute, every movement of theirs filled your head with filthy thoughts.

“shit! stop clenching around me,” jake groaned as you felt how close you were.

“i’m so close,” heeseung grunted and his pace got faster. you sucked harder to help him achieve his high and you felt how jake’s hot shot filled your pussy, soon followed by heeseung filling your mouth. swallowing it all you collapsed on the soft mattress, breathing loudly and deeply, trying to catch your breath. jake also laid on the bed, beads of sweat forming on his forehead.

heeseung sat on the other side, and panting heavily he said: “now that was something else.” earning a chuckle from you and your boyfriend. “you okay?” he asked and rubbed your back, seeing how you remained in an uncomfortable position.

“come here baby.” you heard jake and raising your head you noticed his open arms inviting you to his embrace. you crawled closer to him and nestled against his neck, throwing your leg over his.

your mind was going crazy. not only at the amazing sex you just had but at with whom you experienced it. you felt how a pair of arms sneak around your waist, your body now being hugged from two sides. it only made things worse for you, leaving the one who you wanted to yourself more often behind your back.

[taffywabbit]

"why not just make your own website?"

with the announcement of cohost's death and amidst all the other tumultuous shit currently going on with social media as a concept (i am AMAZED twitter has survived this long given the circumstances), one suggestion that i've been hearing a lot is "we should just go back to the good old days of personal websites. let's all just make neocities pages!!"

(this is gonna be a long one sorry)

and like. idk! it's certainly something i've considered, i think it would be a fun thing to have, but it also feels like the equivalent of "capitalism sucks so let's all just run off into the woods and live in a cabin outside of society" to me. like it would be nice, it would be fun, but it doesn't ultimately solve the actual problems that are present with the modern internet, it just evades them. more importantly in my case and many others, it does not really help people who rely on the modern internet and the connections they're able to make there for their income. sure i can make a website and host my art and blog posts there, but who's going to see it? i can't build a consistent audience and make a living off of random passersby who peek at my website once, say "huh, neat!" and MAYBE add it to an RSS feed or whatever if they really like it. there's minimal potential for meeting and impressing new people outside my existing circles if i don't ALSO still have some manner of social media platform to promote the website on.

a lot of the "solutions" i see people proposing for the slow, painful decline of social media as a user experience keep coming back to old-fashioned, more isolated/insular systems. we miss forums, we miss personal webpages, we miss newsletters, etc etc. but like... those things were ideal in the "old web" because the old web was more about sharing hobbies and interests with whoever happened to pass by and check them out, and even just USING the internet was a niche hobby in and of itself for a lot of people. if you wanna be kinda cynical about it (and not unjustifiably so), web 2.0 is much more blatantly business-oriented, and its algorithms and carefully crafted UX's are primarily meant to funnel you towards viewing ads and spending money on products. looking at it that way, it sure does suck and Everything Was Better Before! but the modern web is ALSO more powerful than anything before it for just like. connecting people. spreading information and news. showing your art/music/writing/thoughts/etc to strangers who never knew you existed an hour ago. putting the tools to reach out to someone and tell them you think they're cool right there on the same website where their art is hosted, just a comment or a message away.

if you're able to avoid patterns of engagement-bait and obsessing over follower counts as a measure of self-worth (a big "if", i realize, but i view it like installing an adblocker - it's just kind of a basic prerequisite for modern internet safety and survival), a lot of these systems can genuinely be really positive and life-changing in ways that were simply not possible 20 years ago! almost all of my current closest friends are people I met through sharing our art on platforms like Twitter who were complete strangers at the time. all of the art clients that regularly pay my bills and support my work came from places like that too! the "social" part of "social media" is really what makes it ultimately worth keeping around in any form, and makes the pursuit of a Good social media platform still valuable.

there's a lot to love about the old web - its aesthetics, simplicity and freedom for personal expression - but every time someone says "just delete your socials and make a personal website" i am forced to confront the fact that i could never do what i currently do or be the person i am on the old web. if i was stuck hanging out in my own little space and only ever interacting with people who openly and loudly share my interests, i couldn't support myself with art full-time, i probably would never have met the kind and quiet strangers who are now my best friends and have made me who i am, and i'd just generally get a lot less insight into the vast range of experiences and perspectives that exist outside of my own. my life would be on a fundamentally different trajectory in countless ways without the advent of web 2.0.

and that's not to say "well twitter and facebook and tumblr all suck but you kinda still have to hand it to them" cuz you don't, obviously. they're corporations, and their job is to take the personalities and thoughts and art of the people who use their products and try to scrunch it all into something uninform and marketable that generates profit and pleases their shareholders. but like, you CAN still make a good thing out of them! these websites are tools just as much as geocities or myspace or IRC used to be. and the one thing these newer tools are pretty much all REALLY good at is discoverability. if you're just a hobbyist at the things you wanna share on the internet, then you likely don't have a lot of use for those tools, and perhaps you WOULD genuinely be happier just keeping a personal blog site or hanging out in private groupchats or sticking to specialized federated Mastodon instances or whatever. it just isn't feasible for me, and there are a LOT of people in my same situation. my entire industry of online freelance artists barely existed 20 years ago, and the web culture of that era is largely incompatible with my continued survival in the mid-2020s. i would LOVE to run off and live in the woods in concept, but all my survival skills are adapted for city living and i would just eat the wrong berry and die out there. i want- i NEED people to try and improve the spaces we're in, and support better forms of social media (like what cohost was trying and largely succeeding to do!) instead of just complaining that it all sucks, everything was better when we were kids, and digging ourselves little holes to hide in. much like all the other problems and frustrations and systemic issues of the world we live in, the modern web isn't going to go away if you just ignore it, so we may as well try to make it better for everyone.

anyways tl;dr i probably WILL make a neocities at some point. it could be fun, even if it doesn't help my career stability or whatever. but i do also need ALL THE SOCIAL PLATFORMS I USE FOR MY JOB TO STOP EXPLODING PRETTY PLEASE, and failing that, some actual half-decent alternatives that aren't going to fizzle out in a month would also be great thanks ✌

[becca-e-barnes]

The Study

Not only is this the start of my 'Moving In' series, I'm also calling it my birthday piece! I turn 24 on Tuesday and I'm trying hard not to think about the fact I'm overdue a quarter-life crisis.

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader

Word Count: 2.7K (oops)

Warnings: Pleasure Dom!Bucky, sub! reader, spanking, use of a vibrator, forced orgasms, kinda Dom vibes but totally consensual, degradation, safe word system but safe word not used, pet names

Summary: Bucky spends the weekend at your new house and you take him on a tour.

Minors, do not interact

Turning the key in the front door still feels odd. One of the very first changes you made to the house was installing a new locking mechanism on both doors and it hasn't had a chance to stiffen up yet.

The smell of paint is starting to dissipate but it hits you hardest when you open the front door. The hallway was one of the last areas of the house to be redecorated so the smell seems to be most noticeable right at the door.

"Damn, this place is deceptive." Bucky's remark makes you smile to yourself while you hang your jacket up. "It's a whole lot bigger on the inside than I thought."

"It surprised me too. All of the rooms are a nice size."

The house had ticked so many boxes for you. More than two bedrooms in a quiet development, a low maintenance garden, off road parking, a downstairs bathroom and the whole house has plenty of potential. The plan isn't to live here forever, after all. It should be easy enough for you to sell when you decide to move on.

You flick a few lights on in the hallway and toss your keys into the bowl on the hall table before you turn your attention back to Bucky standing in your living room. Despite the fact you hadn't removed your own shoes, he's taken his off, leaving them neatly at the doorway of the living room beside his travel bag.

He's respectful of your space; he always has been but it's nice to just have him in your space. It's nice to have him be part of it.

He walks slowly around the little living room, looking at the few ornaments and picture frames you'd collected. "That's cute." He's looking at a picture of you and your best friend, sitting on the floor of your old kitchen, laughing yourselves to tears over the fact your Christmas tree was three inches tall and cut out from the back of a cereal box. The photo brings a smile to your face every time you see it.

"Are you hungry? You've had a long day." You move over behind him, wrapping your arms around his waist and kissing his back through his clothes while he looks at your pictures on the fireplace. He's had to travel for a few hours just to get here so you imagine he's bound to want something.

"I'm okay for now." You nod at his response, taking in the fact he's actually standing in your home.

The time you have with him is limited. That's how this works but for just less than two days, he's yours. After that, he'll go back home so you've learned to make the most of the time you have with him.

"Help yourself to whatever you like. Kitchen is down the hall." You don't even really want to move but you can't stand like this forever.

He turns in your arms so he's facing you and captures your lips in his. It's a soft, slow, gentle kiss; the kind you've been dreaming of since you last saw him. You need him to feel exactly how much you've missed him without having to tell him.

The kiss lasts for minutes, far beyond its natural end but neither of you care.

After what feels like forever, your lips part but your foreheads stay pressed together, both of you determined not to pull away.

"I still haven't gotten the grand tour." He's got the most beautiful eyes and they're locked on yours to the point that you'd almost forgotten he's never been here before. "But I want to start in your favourite room."

"Well, the study is my favourite. I converted one of the bedrooms into an office space."

"Show me."

You don't protest. Instead you head out of the living room and up the stairs to the furthest end of the hallway, with Bucky following closely behind you.

"These all used to be built-in storage units around a headboard for a bed. I took all the doors off the cabinets and made it into shelving." You'd turned the room into a space that you love. The walls are painted a light shade of cream with houseplants lined up between books on the shelves. Instead of storage around a headboard, you now have book shelves, arching around your desk. The other side of the room has a sofa that converts into a bed for extra guests and there's a beanbag in the corner by the window to read on.

"I see why it's your favourite. Odd mix of books here though." Bucky's eyes flick over the titles, ranging from your collection of political figures' autobiographies, the 'Diary of an Oxygen Thief' trilogy, the selection of books providing commentary on the criminal justice system and a good few classics.

"It is. But I like this room. It'll be cosy in winter once I get some fairy lights and nice and bright in summer. Somewhere to unwind." You're thinking out loud as you reach up to close the window and that's when you feel Bucky step behind you.

"I think we should celebrate." Bucky’s voice is low, his lips trailing up the side of your neck, heading towards the spot just behind your ear that he's always loved to kiss.

"I think..." He stops briefly on his path, taking a second to inhale deeply, determined to slow down. "I think we should make love in every room of your new house this weekend."

Fuck.

"Are you sure you're up for that? Because I can really stretch it out. I'm not sure how we're going to make it work in the pantry or the downstairs bathroom but I'm happy to try."

"Your 'pantry' is a cupboard." Bucky's breath is hot on your neck, and you feel his lips have curled into a smile.

"I know. You promised every room though." You can't help but tease him, although you're half serious. It's not your fault that you're keen. Not when he's kissing down your neck like that and holding your waist so your back is flush against him.

"You're a handful." You feel his fingertips graze the bare skin of your waist and you remember how nice it is to just be touched the way he touches you.

"I might be a handful but I can promise if I have my way, after you leave here on Sunday, you won't even be able to think about cumming again until Thursday at the very earliest."

"Jesus, that's one hell of a promise." He turns you around to face him and you notice his eyes are damn near twinkling with excitement.

You've got all weekend together; there's no need to rush but you can't help the overwhelming need to feel him sliding into you. That's when you feel closest to him and it's the closeness you're craving more than anything.

Your hand cups the side of his face, your thumb tracing across his freshly shaved jawline and you allow yourselves a second to just be together.

He smells familiar. The heat of his body against yours makes you feel safe. He makes you feel safe.

"I want to start with you though. I brought you a little something." He kisses your lips gently and smooths a hand down over your hair before he retreats downstairs to the bag that he'd brought a few changes of clothes in.

He returns with a small cardboard box with the tape on one end already cut.

"I didn't have time to wrap it. It arrived last minute." You're so busy trying to get into the box that you hadn't even noticed.

Inside the box are a few instruction manuals, a thin white cord and a black satin pouch. Inside the pouch is a neon pink toy that's thicker at each end, narrow in the middle and nicely curved.

"I've already charged it and paired it to my phone. This end slips inside you." He points to the thicker end, studying your face to make sure you're okay with this.

And why wouldn't you be? This is pretty damn close to a dream come true.

"Remember what you said last time I saw you? You wanted me to spank you. Maybe we should take it a little further." He's always been hesitant to do anything that would hurt you and that fact is the very reason you want him to. You know how much he wants to protect you and knowing he cares about you has you convinced that he's the right person to explore this with.

"Please." You whisper, beyond excited at the thought of getting everything you've begged him for. "What did you have in mind?"

"I'm thinking about you bent over this desk with this inside you and we'll start off with a couple of light taps to that pretty ass." He presses the button on the narrow part of the toy and it give a short buzz, coming to life in his hands.

Fuck, you're into this man. You're into his hesitation just as much as you're into his willingness to try something new.

"Traffic light safe word system. 'Red' and I'll stop, 'amber' and I'll give you a break, 'green' to keep going." He wants to be fully sure you know you're in control here, not that you ever had any doubt.

You nod and stretch up on your tiptoes to kiss him, this time with as much passion as you can manage. Your hands run through his hair while his trail over your body, your tongue flicking gently against his.

Just being around this man makes you wet, not that you'd ever admit that to him. Even the thought of him has you throbbing with arousal so now that he's here in front of you, your whole body feels like it's buzzing.

He touches you like he can't get enough. He can't get you close enough and it's beyond thrilling to be the subject of his need.

It's almost embarrassing that you get yourself worked up so easily but from the hungry look in his eyes when you undo the button of your jeans, he doesn't seem to mind.

You step out of your jeans and panties and Bucky helps you out of your top and bra, leaving you naked in your study.

"Look at you." Bucky sounds like he's almost in awe, no matter how many times he's seen you naked.

He kisses you again, matching the same passion he'd had earlier, trailing his hands over your soft, warm skin until his fingers are nestled between your thighs.

"Fuck, you're soaked." His fingertips trail between the folds of your sex, gathering the wetness he's responsible for. "Good girls don't get this wet at the thought of being spanked. You know that, don't you?"

You're almost too turned on to even respond to him. "Bend over. I want to see how well you take your toy."

You do as you're told, bending over your desk while Bucky drops to his knees behind you to slip the toy inside you. You feel him trail the thicker end of the toy against your slick cunt, gathering enough wetness to let it slip inside you comfortably.

Within a minute, the toy comes to life inside you and there's no way to stifle the moan that catches in your throat.

Not only is the internal part vibrating at a low, delightful buzz, the other end is pressed right to your clit and is stimulating it at the same strength.

"Did I say you could make a sound?" Bucky quizzes, sounding harsher than ever and when he gets no response, his hand comes down on your ass with so much force that it makes you yelp.

It was a hell of a spank and you can feel heat blooming under the skin of your left cheek, quickly followed by another spank to the right.

"For the record, you can make as much noise as you need to. But only because I've told you that you can. You see the difference?"

You force yourself not to nod and it has the effect you were hoping for. Two more harsh, painful spanks are delivered, one to each cheek, the same as before.

You don't know if you imagined it but the toy inside you feels stronger. You can't be sure if you're just focusing on the pleasure over the pain or if Bucky really has turned it up.

"Does that feel nice, sweetheart?" He needs to know you're enjoying this because a little part of him is surprised at just how much he's into it. He gets to control both your pleasure and your pain because you want him to and the trust alone is enough to get him off.

"Feels amazing, fuck. Making such a mess." Stringing sentences together isn't easy but you swear you're about to cum already. Your nipples rub delightfully against the wooden desk and you swear every sensation is heightened.

"I wish you could see the mess you're making. Looks fucking delicious." He turns the toy up ever so slightly but that's enough to send you spiralling, gripping the edge of the desk as pleasure ripples through your entire body.

You can do nothing but sob, cumming relentlessly because he's refused to turn the toy down. Even after you're done, he keeps it at the same intensity, moving on like nothing happened.

"You say the sluttiest things. That promise of yours to totally drain me. Who says shit like that? So fucking filthy."

"I mean it. I want every drop of cum you can give me. And then more." You know saying something like that will earn you another spank and it does.

"You're not just acting like a slut. You are a slut. You spend your life hiding it from everyone else but you can't hide it from me." A shiver runs down your spine. You almost feel like you've been caught. Like he's figured you out and now you have nothing left to hide. "Say it."

It's a clear instruction but saying it makes it real.

Your hesitation earns you another sharp spank, heat prickling both your face and your ass at the same time.

"Don't make me tell you twice." For someone hesitant to slip into a dominant role, he's absolutely nailing it.

"I'm your slut." Your voice is less steady than you would've hoped but the words at clear at the very least.

"My slut?" He almost sounds like he can't believe what he heard.

"Yours. Your slut." You repeat, wishing you could see his face.

"Oh sweetheart, that's cute." He means it too. He turns the toy up as a reward and even though it's only at half its full strength, you can't help but cum again, pleading your way through another blinding orgasm.

"Such a good girl for me. That's it. Cum nice and hard. Give that slutty little pussy what it needs." He lands one more harsh spank on your ass and you swear it only makes you cum harder, to the point that your legs are shaking.

But all of a sudden, the sensation stops completely.

"B-Bucky?" You ask, turning around to look at him, wondering if something went wrong.

"Don't want to wear you out, sweetheart. I think that'll do for now." You agree that it's probably a good place to stop and you have no problem taking the toy out for a while.

He pulls you in close, resting your head on his chest, letting you catch your breath while he holds you and kisses your forehead.

"I didn't hurt you, did I?" His voice is soft, hoping that you'll tell him the truth.

"No. It was perfect." You smile, capturing his lips in yours, hoping to relieve some of his fear. You're almost giddy with excitment. It truly was everything you needed and you fully intend to thank him for it before the weekend is over.

"Good. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would." He's back to the gentle, tender touches that you're so used to from him and it's a blessing that he can flick so effortlessly between both personas.

"How about we order in and stick a movie on?" He suggests, kissing the tip of your nose. "Go put on something comfortable. I'll find a takeout."

[sivseven]

housemates and some others

archons x gn reader [smau & hcs] (modern au)

[potential romantic: venti, zhongli, ei, furina, mavuika ft. neuvillette & scara // platonic: nahida]

Economy in Teyvat has recently been… less than stellar and you have had some certain huge adjustments. Mainly because when you accepted your work, you had to move to the city because that was where your place of work was located. Your line of work does not really want you flaking out on them, meaning you have to be close by when you are needed on certain emergencies.

And so, you had to look for listings on a living space. Most apartments were quite expensive, nothing your current savings could not handle… for like the first three months. But you had to scrap that, you’d rather not risk it, especially on possible medical emergencies that could put a dent on your bank savings.

But then, by some miracle, just a month before your new work starts, you found something relatively cheap — except the very reason why it is cheap is because the villa you will be living in will be shared with a couple of people around. Six to seven people, give or take. And that is not even including you.

You had decided to inquire, and to no one’s surprise, the owner accepts you after running a background check and getting your deposit. You’re already good to go and have been told that you won’t move in until a week later after the last few renovations are done.

You met with your landlord by then, and you are positively smitten — Mister Neuvillette is so nice and dreamy. You feel nothing but some intense catholic guilt for just imagining stupid things that involve him and you.

But this isn’t about you and him.

It’s about you and your really weird roommates.

VENTI

A musician, a composer, just an overall bonafide artist, some kind of member in an idol group that you may or may not be exposed to already — a soul like no other with one hell of a talent in drinking.

He once invited you to hang out with him on a patio, wanting your input for his new piece, you ended up drunk out of your mind with what you think to be the start of your liver problems and maybe the shortening of your lifespan.

Venti is terribly cryptic with his words and it takes every fiber of your being not to crack his skull open to just… understand what is going on with his mind. You tried deciphering most of the shit that he was saying to no avail.

He has a tendency to give you a quick ‘ehe ;P’ whenever he breaks your things, and he pays them eventually… in installments, one measly mora for each week, he tells you all the time about how he’s a starving artist with no mora to his name.

(He quite literally invited you and your other roommates to watch him perform a concert with his idol group, and you watched him get paid stacks for it — and of course, you made him buy you a new pair of headphones).

He owns a blue dragon he named Dvalin and it just floats around the tank like some washed up corpse. To this day, you don’t know if Dvalin is a plastic toy or an actual sea slug.

A huge troll — mostly to Zhongli, hassling him constantly about the ‘good old days’ and how Zhongli was so old and that he sure looks like it (probably from all his boring work, according to Venti).

One of the biggest shit talkers, but he is so cryptic about it that it takes a while for the target to understand, yes you have been on the receiving end at times but in good fun (like hiding his alcohol).

But he does shit talk anyone that does you wrong. Like any time you come to him just venting about this one person, he is quick to jump on your side and even quicker to say something so underhanded about that person that even you’re a little baffled. You and him are definitely a pair of gossip besties.

ZHONGLI

One of the more levelheaded residents in your little clubhouse arrangement. He is responsible, and extremely well put. He has the energy of either a good househusband or a grandpa, waiting for you with tea.

You got along fairly well, and you have unofficially promoted him as your encyclopedia since he seems to know so much, especially from his nation. A proud Liyuen through and through.

He has a regal aura around him, kind of like your landlord, but for some reason, you hardly see the both of them chatting or having tea. You once tried to set up an afternoon tea with him and Neuvillette, and both cancelled on you despite seemingly interested at first.

Come to think of it, you never once had him accompany you to Neuvillette’s office to pay rent — the rest always accompanies you, Furina and Nahida more often than the rest just to have some tea and chat with him. But Zhongli never did.

He is wise beyond his years, and has himself a job as a museum director. This man is a historian, you’re pretty sure with how much knowledge he has around the world. His room is always off-limits to Venti (which turns into your room becoming the drunk’s usual hangout spot that isn’t his room) because sometimes he takes home rare artifacts that could crumble into dust if anyone even dared breathing on it.

He has… odd friends. Really… really odd friends. You thought they were cold at first, but then you realized, the moment they started talking, they sound like regal idiots that are so awkward with talking, like they are not used to talking to people of your caliber (which is like… way below them).

A stickler for contracts, never did break them once. Any deal you make with him is written on paper. You still have a souvenir of a crude contact written in a Starbucks napkin.

Every time you guys go out, dinner is automatically on you. He always forgets his wallet at home that at this point, you consider giving him a chain for his wallet to not forget it.

He has a frog named Azhdaha and it hates you… and a bit of Zhongli too.

EI

Bless this woman. She is your purple wife, a hardcore recluse and gamer, going in her room for hours to just game. You’ve come to learn that Ei is a popular streamer and has once walked in on her doing so when you came to bring her dinner over.

You nearly got cancelled because apparently, her parasocial fans really dislike the idea of her having a possible caring partner that brings her food out of nowhere. They found your twitter quickly and some asshole was planning to dox you so they can hunt you down and punish you for stealing their ‘gamer wife’.

For some reason, even after that debacle, she makes you sit beside her at times during a stream and makes you ‘get along’ with her chat.

You nearly had a #[Name]IsOverParty a second time when you lightly directed her to the right direction when she was exploring the same game you were also playing just to help her, saying you were being condescending and that apparently it means you must not believe women can be gamers.

Ei cannot cook. It’s like her cooking just cannot exist in any type of universe. You were sure that if there was another universe where even she is an almighty ruler of a nation, she’d still be unable to cook.

You once made the mistake of asking her to cook you something when you were newly introduced in the house and she gave you the weirdest looking soba noodles. You swore it looked at you, but she had an expectant look on her face that you had no choice but to stomach it.

You and her are the epitome of the meme that goes like ‘x who just woke up at 2am’ 🤝 ‘y who is just about to sleep at 2am’.

Often these run ins turn into a 2am session of just binging shitty videos on the internet, or her trying to teach you the better builds for your Tarnished after you make yourself and her a bowl of instant ramen noodles.

She has a friend… Yae Miko, who is some… CEO of a publishing company. She terrifies you sometimes and you do not recommend being alone with the both of them, it is likely you will not survive for reasons… that are not to be disclosed.

NAHIDA

You were confused when you first met her. Actually, you even asked your other roommates if they also brought their kid. And everyone looked at you and said, “Oh yeah, that’s Nahida, don’t worry, she makes the best soup when you’re sick.”

And you were just genuinely perplexed about her existence. She is a literal child, but her mind transcends so much — you can even say it has a better mileage than Venti’s, but to be fair, he has borderline alcoholism to deteriorate his cognitive functions, so that probably wasn’t saying much.

She is the epitome of someone who either knows too much or knows too little and there is little space for the normal in between.

Also wise beyond her years… how many that may be. You wonder how she can pay for her rent or even afford to live without her parents… but apparently, it’s better that you know little about her origins, and that her family is with you and your other roommates (it was so hard not to melt at that).

So how can she pay for her share on the rent? She has a covert consultancy job in managing databases. For some reason, this kid is more tech savvy than you will ever be. Everyone comes to her to troubleshoot their phones and she is always happy to entertain them, provided that you let her make you try her candied al— akji… ajilenakh nuts. In all fairness though, they are pretty damn good.

Does she go to school? Technically? But she does it remotely, on her laptop, so there are hours within the day where the villa is so quiet just so Nahida can have her time with her, what you are sure, are university-level lessons.

She has a snake called Apep. It disappears from its cage randomly, and holy shit does it put everyone on edge. Everyone forgets Apep until she turns up three months later.

She has… a friend? No, a son (??), just… someone she supervises. And it’s the saltiest guy you’ve ever met. He’s an asshole but somehow you guys are casual friends that send each other the shittiest memes. He is… definitely well-connected. Nahida supervises him, he is in the same idol group with Venti and a companion of Zhongli’s (the emo one, you recall), and for some reason, he is tense and frosty around Ei.

You and her have tea parties together, with Furina usually and Zhongli. And she always accompanies you when it’s time to pay your monthly dues.

FURINA

Your darling wife in blue. She is actually also a popular figure in Teyvat. An opera singer who is constantly making the most groundbreaking performances in Teyvat. She is from Fontaine, so of course it is already very much expected.

For some reason, she is the only one with a discounted rent payment? Neuvillette permitted it, and when you asked him, he said he was looking after Furina and you just fell harder for the man.

Not going to lie, when you first met her, you were intimidated and a little standoffish. She was a star, a literal legend, a household name that even as someone who doesn’t dabble much in opera arts, you just… know her from the news.

But the moment you further got to know her, you had a cultural reset with how incredibly subdued and skittish Furina is. She is so easy to startle and extremely sensitive. You found out how much of a class act she is though.

The definition of healing her inner child. You walk into her room and you nearly got confused if it was Nahida’s or hers. But if not for the blue themed room, you’d have definitely mistaken her room for someone else’s. It wasn’t just… something you would ever expect from a star like her. Her room’s most distinct features were the four plushies that sat on her big queen bed.

A crab, a seahorse, an octopus, and a huge… thing. She said it was an Oceanid, made for her by the production that she starred a play in which was titled “The Little Oceanid”. You watch her snuggle with it when you would crash in her room just to give her some company.

She hates, hates, HATES, being alone. Not her thing. Not ever. You asked, and it was something about her being isolated for so many years despite the fact that she is a literal star. And because of that, your room gained a new tenant other than the alcoholic idol.

She has a close relationship with Neuvillette, hence the docked rent. They seem to go way back and she always joins you to his office when it’s time to pay rent. You once tried to ask her to put in a good word for you and she looked at you, offended, because she thought you and her were planning a long term cohabitation that was not at all discussed beforehand.

This goes without saying, but she invites everyone to her plays. Front row seats every time and it is just… magical every time she is out there, shining.

MAVUIKA

She is definitely the most normal roommate there is. But she’s also kind of popular? In a sense that she has a lot of connections. She has friends who are actually normal? People you can actually talk to?? No offense to Xianyun, Houzhang, and Jiehu.

Her friends come in to storm the villa every now and then. Your most memorable one was probably this Kinich guy and his rabid… dog, Ajaw. It tried to bite off any person that came close, and it won’t stop barking. Kinich calls Ajaw the yappatron and none dare contest such a name.

Other than in real life, Mavuika is also really popular online. Mostly because of her biker chick aesthetic. Apparently, the internet ate it up. How did they know? Ei posted a picture of Furina taking a selfie with her and Mavuika (and somehow your back was caught on the background picture too). Ever since then, her quiet 8k followers on Twitter and Insta blew up into a million followers.

The opposite of Zhongli. When you two go out together for dinner, it’s HER shout. It always is, somehow it evens it out, you’re not sure why. Of course, those dinners always involve you riding her bike with her.

You guys are the definition of bait. Absolute bait. You post each other on stories, which is just, hilarious because it leaves her fans always speculating. So far no one has decided on which one is it. Though in the end, as crazy as they are, you’re grateful Mavuika’s whipped fans aren’t really as terrifying as Ei’s. No one dared to cancel you and were just making some deranged comments of having a threesome with you and her. Well, now you’re not so sure which is worse.

There is an unoccupied room in the house, and Mavuika uses it for her home gym. She works out and you watch, but you always run away before she could drag you to join her. You tried, but her workouts are so intense, you’d literally rather have liver failure.

Undoubtedly one of the most caring roommate you’ve had the pleasure of living with. She is incredibly dependable and is just a warm blanket of a person. You once got sick and she’s there caring for you when Nahida is busy.

Mavuika is a street racer, and often wins it. You’re not really sure the ins and outs of it, but you’re pretty damn sure that she is, quite literally, loaded from winning those races.

You ask her why she’s still living with you all if she’s already loaded, she only shrugged and dragged you to her room, never to be seen again.

extras:

NEUVILLETTE

SCARAMOUCHE

[idrawfunkythings]

DCAtober Day 13: Night

Words 1,000+ Summary: You and Moon have a nighttime chat

Moon isn’t in the apartment when you wake up.

It was late, which you could see by the way no light crept through the blinds over the window. A bleary glance at your nightstand informed you it was about 2:37, or in Moon’s words, way past your bedtime. Usually, said animatronic would be lying next to you, either indulging in one of the new hobbies they’d picked up since arriving or plugged into the wall charging. Instead, the space next to you is empty.

Now that you’re awake, you kind of want to make sure your favourite jester is okay. It wasn’t like him to leave you alone. Ever since… well, they preferred to know you were safe.

“Moon?” you call in a hushed voice, pushing the fluffy blankets off of you as you get up. Your feet slide into the slippers that they always leave out when you sleep. You appreciate the warmth - despite being inside, it was clear that your city was in the depths of winter.

The robot doesn’t respond, which is fine. It’s totally fine. It’s not like they couldn’t look after themselves. But your heart still picks up as you step of your bedroom and tread to the living room, searching for any hint of where they could be.

He’d clearly done some tasks after you’d gone to bed. The dishes were done and drying, and the washing machine was spinning quietly. You still couldn’t find them, however, and you didn’t like not knowing where they were.

Your footsteps quicken, and you duck over to the kitchen, double checking even though you know if they were there, you would have seen them the moment you entered the room. Your breathing becomes more panicked when you confirm that yes, they aren’t there, and you’re running out of places to look.

They could be on the roof, but your keys are still hanging on the hook and the door is locked. The bathroom door is closed and the light is off. You pace as you think, shivering in the cold.

Okay. This was… not ideal. But it was fine. Maybe they’d gone back into your bedroom and you hadn’t noticed, or maybe they’d gone into the bathroom and just not turned the light on. Maybe your neighbour had needed help and they’d forgotten the keys in their hurry. Maybe-

Your living room window catches your eye.

The curtain over it is fluttering gently, like wind is coming through. You scramble over and lift it, audibly gasping with relief when you see Moon sitting on the fire escape outside. He turns to you, looking very much like he’s about to scold you for being awake, but is cut off when you barrel into him with an embrace. You bury your face in his nightshirt (one that you’d made him wear, because his chest was like ice and you were sick of waking up because of it).

“Are you okay?” he asks with concern, hands traversing you to check for any potential harm. You nod your head, arms still wound around his torso. “What happened?”

“I couldn’t find you,” you say, muffled through his shirt. You look up at him, his red eyes peering into yours with worry, and watch as they clear with understanding. He hugs you back, silent for a moment. You close your eyes and say thickly “I thought you were gone.”

“Where would we go?” Moon asks, his voice rasping as it always does. “Our place is with you.”

“I thought something had happened,” you say quietly. “Like before.”

Moon hums. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, Comet, but we are no longer in the plex.” You push at his arm with forced irritation.

“You know what I mean, Moon! I was scared. I thought you’d left me.”

He chuckles softly, his fans whirring in his body, creating a sort of heater effect that you take advantage of, pressing your body closer.

“It would take a lot to get us away from you.”

Despite the cold, you feel your face warm, and you sit up, leaning onto him and gazing out at the city below you. “You’re just saying that to make me feel better.” The streetlamps create a soft yellow glow.

Moon tilts his head to look down at you, resting your head on his shoulder. “We mean it.” The wind whistles. “While we still operate, we will never leave you.”

You don’t know what to say to that, so you don’t respond, just stare out at the horizon. Somewhere out in that direction, the remains of the Pizzplex have been cordoned off and boarded up. Moon doesn’t seem to be sharing your thoughts - he’s still watching you.

“Why did you come out here?” You ask after a while, not moving from your spot. He hunches over slightly, looking away.

“…We wanted to see the city,” he responds, almost sounding ashamed. “We’ve never seen it like this before.”

Oh. You place your hand on his own, pleasantly surprised that he’s activated his heating system and his fingers aren’t frozen to the touch. “What do you think?”

“It’s beautiful.”

He squeezes your hand, suddenly needing to regain control over the situation. “I mean, I’ve seen better.”

You smile. “Of course.”

His eyes glow brighter than before, and you roll your eyes, knowing what’s coming. “Why aren’t you asleep?”

You rib him gently, laughing. “I don’t suppose you care, but you made the apartment cold.”

He exhales a staticky sigh. “I suppose I’ll have to lie next to you and heat you up.”

“Oh no,” you say sarcastically. “I guess I’ll have to let you hug me, and stay with me all night. Only because I’m cold, obviously.”

Moon eyes your outfit, as if only now noticing you were very much prepared for a toasty night in bed and not a night time chat in the cold winter air. “We should go inside before you get sick.”

You make a big show of being dramatic, flopping onto him reluctantly. “Ughhhh, fine. Come on Moon Man, let me go back to bed.”

[ronkeyroo]

A positive Update

Friends, kind folk - Hello Again 🤍

Ever since my last update post, I've been thinking about it , a lot ;; I knew I needed time to cook and reflect, and im so glad I gave myself that...

2024 started rough for me; I fell severely ill again - I was too busy cursing my life and dwelling over how betrayed I felt by things still not getting better despite my efforts that I didn't realize I was walking into a self fulfilling prophecy. Its true that the struggles I'm going through are yet to be solved, that its gotten so much to the point giving up seemed easier, and that a couple individuals haven't been making it easier on me either; I swayed and i rattled and I steered within feelings ranging from confusion to anger to dismay and all of this back and forth did nothing but remind me of yet another self-destructive loop I just don't want to allow in my life anymore. Its exactly the kinda stuff that made me ill to begin with, and I've been so lost dealing with everything in between that i forgot to tend to the actual core centering all of this...

It grew unbearable how much emotional and physical turmoil I was pushing myself into, and knowing how intertwined these two elements have been; I had to draw a line before i majorly screwed myself over, gathering any bit of inner will to discipline myself back into some sort of clarity, enough to at least look through a lens OUTSIDE my pain for once, towards the kind of life I want to lead, and the kind of life I don't; and I came to an understanding.

From my physical state to my mental, to the people and memories I've experienced, both the good and the bad - I want to prioritize the good.

Not in a shitty ass, toxic optimism kinda way but in a "I want to prioritize knowing and living the possibility that even when it hurts, even when i want to be gone, even when life doesn't align - There's still every good reason in the world to keep moving forward, to face things from a perspective of growth & compassion, and to grow to love the promise of a better tomorrow even when today was unbearable." To know that I don't end or begin in my suffering, that the infinite potential I speak so fondly of applies to me, as well...

I want to be able to wield and create and share that goodness, too, Especially when it is already in decline...And for all gods sake, to internalize that all of this STILL exists and STILL matters even when it doesn't work the first couple or dozens of times.

As for my place here in Tumblr...I know the sentiment might feel silly to some but the experiences, memories, and connections I've made here have truly been such a significant force in my life, and i don't want to give up on that ;; Not because of my own insecurities, or an inner state of hopelessness, and especially not over a bunch of emotionally immature Anons that dont know how to handle themselves; I want to forgive all of that.

I'm stubborn, and there's an unyielding force within me that no matter how many times it is struck down, it proved itself ridiculously resilient. I'm perking up with with a fiery confidence realizing just how many times it rose back up, enough to realize it is an unchangeable part of me ;_; I shouldn't underestimate that force, and I want to keep living by its side. Whatever positive change I can sprinkle onto my life and the lives of those I care for, I will! And the reason why this space in particular is so important to me, is because so much of that already exists here, alongside you folks;

THAT'S the kind of energy i want to nourish and walk into the new year with! I want to continue growing as a person, challenging my inner turmoils, undoing the self punishing dogmas that still haunt me, stop flexing my teeth over things that don't deserve my time and god DAMN, just - indulge in the stuff that makes me happy, even when I'm going through unhappy times.

So yeah...I guess that means, I'm back & I'm staying ;_;)🧡

I know i may seem like a broken record when it comes to expressing gratitude but - Thank you, thank you thank you everyone who have reached out for me, who so fondly kept me in their thoughts and kept encouraging me whenever i was hurting, both then and now...You folks mean more than whatever ailment or struggle I can go through, and while I'm unsure of how the future will look like as I'm still going through various challenges- I couldn't have asked for a cooler, sweeter audience to have by my side whenever Its time to take a rest or hype over our sexy delicious blorbos!

Speaking of which....................I have been cooking quite a lot of things in the time i was away 👀✨ I most definitely intend to serve them, eheheh

[natasha-in-space]

Alright, I'm gonna babble a bit on my thoughts and observations with the magnificent CG's we got for the Choi boys' birthday this year 'round! And, boy, what beautiful CG's they are. I acknowledge that some had problems with them, but I honestly couldn't be happier. Both of them made me feel giddy for two days in a row! The artist did a fantastic job, and it's a treat to still get some new content from Cheritz. Now, let's start with Saeyoung!

God, do I adore the soft, domestic feel of this one. It's peaceful, intimate, and tender in a way that sharing a special moment with the one you love is. I am a sucker for simple domestic moments of romance, so even I admittedly swooned at this one!

Since it's dark outside, we have two options. It's either a small private celebration between you two after he spent the day with his brother and RFA, or you're congratulating him as soon as the clock strikes midnight. I find both options equally sweet and fitting! Either way, you are sharing a small private moment with him, with just you two for a small while. I believe he would be deeply grateful for that.

It looks like he's gotten himself a place out in the city! Isn't that a lovely thing to see? I do think he'll keep his bunker, whether it's for potential emergencies or just for safekeeping, but I always loved the idea of Saeyoung creating a new home for himself, however that may look like. It is logical for his new apartment to have large windows that are high enough to see the night sky. It's very much Saeyoung. And it's very much Saeran, too! During the day, Saeran enjoys the warm sunlight and vast clouds, while Saeyoung enjoys looking at the stars and teaching you about space at night.

He made sure his new home had windows because his bunker didn't have any. A reminder of his new freedom to live out a peaceful life with his family without needing to look over his shoulder at every step.

We have some gifts laid out in the background! The interpretation of whether this is from you, Saeran, or RFA is up to you. I like the latter option. It does make you think what kind of gifts would everyone prepare for him! Lots of funny and/or sweet ideas to think about.

There are also lots of frames hung up on the wall and laid out on the shelves. It made me giggle. Because of course, Saeyoung would litter his home with photos of you once he gets the freedom to do so. It's even a bit excessive, but how can you complain? This man was terrified of having evidence of his own existence out in the world for years. Not to mention that he was not allowed to have any reminders of the people he loved, as he was afraid of their safety.

Of course, he will make sure to surround himself with reminders of a brighter future now that he can. Selfies with you, photos of Saeran reading a book or cooking, and outings with the RFA. All such precious moments he doesn't want to take for granted.

As many have already pointed out, the cake is from Saeran! Ain't that sweet? The first time I noticed it, I glowed with joy because I adore the idea of Saeran making something by hand for his older brother. Saeyoung was always the giver and protector in their relationship, back when they were kids... Now, they can start over with more balance. And Saeran can also take care of his brother. I can't help but think of him spending hours in the kitchen, making sure everything is perfect, and that's just... so damn heartwarming. I love these two and their love for each other. They deserve to be together without fear.

@marshmallowprotection went over the details of the cake very thoroughly in her post, so I won't go over it personally, but, oh my God, of course Saeran would put in small meaningful details into his cake. It's so much like him. From the flowers to cherries and whatever that is written in that envelope. I am certain that Saeyoung will likely shed tears upon reading it. Heck, Saeran can just scribble out a big 'Happy birthday Hyung :)' on there, and it'll make him cry just as much.

Saeyoung is unfamiliar with being taken care of or appreciated. It will take him some time to stop getting emotional over the smallest things when it comes to his family.

Speaking about the CG as a whole, I love how relaxed and tender he looks. It's nothing fancy, just a black shirt and jeans. That's what makes it so soft and domestic for me. It's just you and Saeyoung. In your home. Being together and cherishing each other. And that's better than any grand display.

We get to see more of Saeyoung's arms!!! I always love when they splice up some things that are very much true to canon. While it doesn't make any sense at all to make Yoosung or Saeran muscular jocks, it's very much in line with Saeyoung. It's easy for those arms to lift you up and hold you tight! I also actually like that he's visibly broad in here. I know it's not everyone's interpretation, but it makes him actually look, y'know, older. Even though he'll be 21 forever, it's pleasant to imagine him in his late twenties or early thirties. I know most of my guy friends got very broad in the shoulders once they hit their middle twenties lmao

I also very like MC's dress. It's super cute and comfortable. And that watch on Saeyoung's wrist? Another nice touch. I don't know why, but I always pictured him into watches lol. Mostly because he seems to have a soft spot for anything technical. It's easy to see him being fascinated by the inner workings of different watch models. He's such a nerd (affectionate)

Look at that giddy smile! He's such a cutie. Love to see him be all happy like that. Also his hair is once again super red. I'm telling you, it changes color depending on his mood. It's my biggest theory in whole MM storyline/j

AND NOW ONTO THE MAN HIMSELF, THE ONE I'VE BEEN BENDING MY KNEE FOR EVER SINCE I SAW HIM, THE ONE I IMPLODED MY DM'S OVER-

Ahem

Yes. We got an actual official Unknown/MC CG. The fandom exploded. I know I saw it, I know you saw it, we all saw it. Unknown took the fandom by storm, and he knows it. Look at that smirk. I even saw quite a few old MM artists thinking of coming back just because of him lmao

That's the power this man holds.

Alright, my incessant ramblings aside, this CG looks absolutely ethereal. And it's pretty much intentional. Goes in line with Unknown's aesthetic, too. I know we all love to lovingly call him the king of edge that he is, but from what we see of him? He'll probably put you in something similar. He is your guardian angel, after all. The one who will lead you to a true paradise you couldn't even hope to reach by yourself. He is your loving shepherd, and you are his precious lamb.

The placement of Unknown in such a graceful environment makes sense.

So, Unknown's cake has strawberries AND blueberries on it. No wonder many people instantly remembered the birthday CG from two years ago! It's a nice and interesting comeback. Once again, redirecting you to @marshmallowprotection analysis post for the in-depth on it, because she lays it out beautifully! I'll just say that it's intriguing to note that besides strawberries, blueberries appear to be another confirmed favorite of Saeran's. I know I love my blueberries.

Here's to hoping that this is a fake cake, because if I see food drowning like that, I would riot, no matter how beautiful and enticing Unknown may look 😔 You're eating that cake, mister! You are not wasting it for a pretty aesthetic!! It also begs the question who made the cake in the first place, and Kait puts out a very interesting thought that this is, in fact, a photoshoot. It's also comforting to think that MC was behind it. Just because I'm a sucker for the idea of Unknown getting spoiled for once in his lifetime. He also seemed to be rather yearning in his birthday chats that you can purchase, so it's a sweet thought for me.

MC is absolutely gorgeous here. I have zero complaints. Unknown is one lucky man, and he knows it. Her skin is perfectly complimented by that shade of pink, and she looks like a nymph or something. I also love how flowy the dress is. You can just tell how soft that fabric is to the touch, and I am on my knees both for this MC and the artist for all their hard work. Also!!! MC has an actual eye visible for once! Always a nice and rare surprise.

The dress is pretty revealing, too, and I couldn't stop giggling once I actually noticed that. What can I say? Unknown knows his tastes, and I sure respect him for that. As I said in another post, her lap is definitely not the only thing he lays his head on, and I am, frankly, jealous of him.

All that to say.... guys. MC is just a stand-in. She doesn't look like 90% of the player base. Heck, I look nothing like this MC! Please don't be discouraged just by how she appears in certain CG's! There are plenty of guys, queer folks and women who look nothing like her, who love and adore Saeran as a character. And you know what? All of you would be loved and appreciated by Saeran. Whatever weight, whatever gender, whatever skin color you are. Your own unique appearance will make you just as ethereal next to him. Because it's you.

Saeran has the same love for you as you have for him. Unknown included!

Now onto the man himself..... God.... how gorgeous he is...... I know I felt like I was falling in love with him all over again when I saw him, pfft-

Who is Unknown without his belts and chokers? Once again, Unknown knows what he likes, and I respect the hell out of it. You go king!

Need I say that they gave him freaking EARRINGS???? I know I wouldn't be freaking out about that as much, if it wasn't a fan thing for years. And now he gets the earrings we all knew he deserves in canon. Life could be a dream.

He also has a cross. Which is a rather... interesting choice. Once again, @marshmallowprotection goes over it in detail in her post. Another fun personal interpretation I had (bc I love giving a darker vibe to things) is that perhaps this image is taken after Saeyoung got captured by Mint Eye. Unknown takes and wears his brother's cross as a mockery of his brother's faith and as a declaration of his triumph. I must say, though, that's, like.... 99% not what is intended here, and just my personal fun musings.

I also find it both hot and hilarious that Unknown has his shirt open like that. He saw his brother's CG and went: 'oh hell no, I can do better'. He's so extra, and I adore him. I also don't think he's muscular here???? He's not depicted as broad or buff. I think people just misinterpret the art style a bit. He doesn't really have any prominent muscle here, and it looks significantly different to Saeyoung's CG. I think the artist just either didn't have much time to flesh it out (an issue Kait goes in detail over), or they had trouble with depicting what they wanted to depict. Or I'm just talking out of my ass here, and they really did make him jacked, but my eyes will continue to willfully choose to not see that 😔

All that to say, I definitely went feral over this guy showing so much skin, and the desire to BITE is strong with this one.

He'll be on my mind first the rest of the year. What an absolute treat.

It's so much like Unknown to be all snazzy and cordial with you. I love how they showcased his mannerisms here. It's irrelevant whether you interpret it as cunning or genuinely affectionate here. That smirk is very much Unknown, and we all know it. I wanna smooch his cheeks so bad. Kait also went over the flower analysis in her post, so I highly advice you to check it out!!

In summary, I couldn't be happier with what we got this year. This is everything I ever wanted and more. Will be definitely writing individual pieces for these, because how can I not?

[lilac-rose-writes]

KINDERGARTEN 3: Questions + Crack Theories

(Some done with @charismabee in messages <3)

1. Where are the other kids?

THEORY 1: The correct one. Bob adopted them all. Grabbed as many kids as he could see and took off with them. Their home lives sucked before? That's okay! Now they have a Bob! Unfortunately, despite his large janitor arms, he could only carry six children at a time. And by the time he went back for the others, they had been signed up to a new school and carted off by their parents. How sad. :(

THEORY 2: The Kindergarten one. They've all been kidnapped. Uh oh! They're hanging out with the mysterious disappearing former principal somewhere. Jerome is crying. Lily is furiously looking for an escape. Billy is having a panic attack. Ted "Felix" is being "Felix". Buggs is hitting things. Ozzy is having a panic attack. Things are fun <3

THEORY 3: The silly one! They're in the library. Regis looked at the troublemakers who have killed/want to kill/look like they want to kill people and put them allll in study hall together. And then put Ozzy there too. For funsies! So now they're all being scolded for committing all the murders and/or being Ozzy. Carla finds out she wasn't invited to Murder Club and she is furious.

2. What's up with Felix/Ted??

THEORY 1: After going home on Tuesday, Ted somehow discovered Felix's plans to kill him. Maybe he found the contract, maybe Felix straight-up told him (he is such a terrible liar. The WORST. I will be going back to this point in theory 2). However it happened, Ted learnt Felix wanted to kill him, pulled a Cain's Not Able alt route, and got his own back. He's in his Theodore era now. No more silly expressions. He looks at the space Felix left behind, and slots into it seemingly perfectly.

THEORY 2: The better one. Felix is pretending to be Ted. Felix too was grouped into the intended Murder Club, but he wasn't going to spend all day in study hall. Ew. So, he does the logical thing, and has Teddy fill his place. Felix thinks he's completely inconspicuous- like a sneaky hawk, so to speak. The thing is, he keeps "teehee"-ing between words and doing a frankly terrible impersonation of Ted. Remember all of his smug gloating throughout Cain's Not Able (e.g. "heheh... you have the most important part", the stealing Monty's arm plot failing so badly that Monty somehow knew Felix wanted to steal something from him and that said something was an arm, etc)? Take that and multiply it tenfold. Even the kids he's never spoken to before can tell he's not "Teddy". Meanwhile, Ted is sitting in Murder Club and trying so hard to act like Felix, but the only preparation he's had is switching shirts and he keeps trying to kill Ozzy when no-one's looking.

THEORY 3: Cain's Not Able just carried over through loops. Stevie's bandaged up, we only have one twin. Once again, Theodore arc initiated.

3. Alice & Ms Lovelett are related

THEORY: This one is simply because they are both redheads & Alice is an amnesiac. It's probably not going to be canon considering the amount of staff members' (principals') kids we have so far, but it's interesting to think about! I think it could add a lot of depth & mystery towards Ms Lovelett as a character, as well as giving us something to unpick about Alice's lost memories.

4. What's up with Monty's legs?

THEORY 1: The popular "Monty has Penny's legs" idea- part I. He went down to the lab (bc hey! Secret Lab! That sounds AWESOME for science!) and he found a Penny. A very dead, very robotic Penny. With legs. So, fitting right in with the weird limb rules of this universe, he does what Nugget did with Stevie's arm and takes those legs for himself. After all, it's not like Penny needs 'em anymore. He's being eco-friendly and reducing, re-using & recycling. It sucks that the skirt was also robotic. He could potentially get it off if he tried hard enough but he really wants legs again now and if he did there would be nothing else covering his new legs.

THEORY 2: The popular "Monty has Penny's legs" idea- part II. He still has Penny's legs, but this time, it wasn't his idea. If Applegate can somehow rise from the dead, who's to say that the superior-minded Dr Danner can't? Wouldn't be surprised if he's made himself immortal or something. He sees legless alive specimen Monty and legful dead specimen Penny and goes "hey little boy, want to swap legs with this robot?". Doesn't really matter if Monty wants to or not. His own legs are chopped off & replaced with Penny legs. He's so embarrassed about it. This will 100% ruin his street cred and also he didn't want his one-day broken legs to be gotten rid of forever. Sigh.

5. Romeo & Juliet

THEORY: This one's more of a silly guess/prediction, really. Either "Ted"/Ted gets cast as Romeo or we as Kid do (I like to think Kid will be managing all the behind the scenes stuff instead though :]) and Cindy demands to be Juliet. Only problem is, they're horrendous at acting. Cindy is over-the-top and overdramatic (like the queen she is). "Ted" is and always has been the worst actor to ever act ever. Ted too is pretty terrible at it and completely unused to being in the spotlight for anything. At least one character has stage fright. I can see Ms Lovelett as one of those teachers who start out sweet and welcoming, reassuring them all that they'll have lots of fun and put on a great show. But this is, of course, Kindergarten, so things quickly take a turn for the worse. She quickly becomes overbearing towards the performance, trying to perfect every little thing and criticising everyone repeatedly. With each passing minute, she becomes more and more frazzled. Her love for theatre is "insatiable", and she can't be stopped. The performance ends with the actors of Romeo and Juliet actually dying. Someone is poisoned, someone is stabbed. Maybe Nugget stabs someone. Maybe Nugget poisons someone. He has before. Seriously WHO thought it was a good idea to give him a knife in this game-

6. Regis' Deal

THEORY: Piecing together what we have so far, I'd say it's almost definite that he's the one behind the former principal's disappearance. He's taken on the role of classic Evil Kindergarten Principal, making both drugs and goo, making not just children but adults disappear too (hey K1 principal, imagine only being able to kidnap one child. To be fair he's a pretty sneaky hawk child who likes to hide in places but still. Skill issue).

Nugget's playing in the green goo outside. At lunch, he claims that he's "feeling funny again!", and at the start of the day, he encourages Kid to eat it. Upon doing so, Kid seemingly goes to the principal's office, where he is then sent to the medical room, looking distinctly green himself with a goo globule implying his death inside his last apple. It's safe to presume that this goo is at least somewhat similar to that of the goo in Kindergarten 2. Agnes adores it and it significantly disoriented Bob, so we can infer that it could have addictive/drug-like properties. It can kill people, as shown by the janitor's closet in K2. We know that it mutated people, and sustained Penny. It's dangerous. And there's a great deal of it all over the place.

In fact, there are elements from both of the previous principals' research scattered throughout the trailer. We see:

Green goo in a pool the janitor is cleaning in the cafeteria, a little away from the taped-over "STAFF ONLY CLOSET" door. Who has closets? Janitors. Who's a powerful member of staff? Regis, the former janitor.

Green goo pouring out of some sort of pipe into a puddle right below three tinted windows

The nurse's green cigarette smoke. We can guess that she designed the nurse's office, and therefore the posters within it- including the one discouraging/banning smoking inside of the medical room. So why would she be smoking herself?

A darkened, red version of the door presumably leading to the classroom. Dark, greenish stains cover the entire wall, but especially by that door in particular

The hole Regis drops Kid into for some reason. It has blood streaked down it- has someone been crushed by the closing mechanism before? Was one of the bloodied bags deposited there? Or, of course, did someone before Kid just spray up blood with the same absurd propulsion as a particularly bouncy ball?

IN THE PRINCIPAL'S OFFICE-

A brown monster with some sort of sword through its head

A bloody bag, perhaps containing the rest of the monster. It's leaked onto the floor, and bears a lot of resemblance to those seen in K1

A sword in a glass case, similar to the guns the principal had encased in K1

What does this all say? Well, I'd take it to mean that we have yet another shady principal/ murderous janitor on our hands. There's something behind those windows, something inside the staff-only closet, a reason why there are goo stains everywhere. Something happened to the former principal. Something's happened to the other kids. And Regis is the one behind it.

But other than that? Atm I've got nothing lol

I'd love to hear your own theories and thoughts on the trailer!! Maybe I'll add more to this tomorrow; the KG3 reveal has thrown me straight into analysis mode. No detail shall escape my scrutiny <3

[cosmiccrushes]

Truth & Lies

Solas x Lavellan

1k words

I'm obsessed with the idea of Solas watching lavellan in her dreams, like ugh, the s u f f e r i n g

-------

He knows she dreams of this cove and its soft green meadows often. For he waits in its shadows for her return. Beckoning her to walk in this place where they once stood together. Where he had looked upon the markings on her face and told her what it meant, lying about how he knew. Meaning to tell her a different truth and lying to himself about why he could not.

So much lying. And still too much truth. 

Solas had a plan. He really did. It was with painful, teeth gritting stubbornness that he had forced himself to maintain that plan when Corypheus fell and the Breach was sealed. He had left her. She was a threat to his plans. Lie. What she made him feel, that was the real threat. Truth. 

The people needed him still. He could not let one Dalish elf change that. No matter how beautiful he found her piercing green eyes. No matter how his heart squeezed at her openness and curiosity. No matter how he felt his beliefs waver in her presence when she spoke with such passion and protectiveness for this world and those in it. No matter the pride she held towards her Dalish kin. She did not really know what could be, what had been. 

Solas knew what must be done. Knew it every time he let his lips press to hers. Still he had held on. She had made it so hard to let go. Her wanting of him made him yearn. He wished he could simply be an outcast- just an elf who saw the world differently with no real power to do anything about it. But he was not that elf. He was power and potential. The Dread Wolf. He Who Hunts Alone. A false god of betrayal and rebellion. His rebellion was not yet over. Nor it seemed, was his betrayal. 

He knew her learning his truth would hurt. What he had not been prepared for was the doubt that crept in like a fog settling over his eyes, clouding his vision forward. Looking into her eyes, clear and bright with unshed tears, as he finally gave her the truth of who she shared her heart with…it had not just been painful for him- it had felt wrong. 

She had pleaded with him. “Var lath vir suledin!” Our love will endure. His reply, “I wish it could, vhenan.” He really did. But he knew in that moment- when his arms ached to hold her and his weary bones longed to lay with her and forget his responsibilities- their love could not endure. He must rip her out of his heart or rip his whole heart out of him if she could not be removed from it as he feared. He could not afford to feel doubt for what must be done. He could not allow these feelings for her to continue and plague his mind with wrongness for what comes next. 

So he had turned away from her. Taking a last kiss and then her arm, because even in his conviction that she was a threat to his plans, he could not bear to see her suffer. The anchor was killing her and the thought of her dead burned like fire inside his veins. Nevermind that when he was through with his objective, she might be dead anyway. No, his jaw hardened at that thought. She would survive. She had to survive. The new world would need people like her.

He needed her.

But no, that thought was forbidden now- a dark magic he did not dare to wield. A truth he must bury away under a mountain of lies.

She would live- and when he was done she would see- this way was better, this was setting the world right.

Those first months after they parted had been hard, but not impossible he found. He could force himself not to think of her and it worked. Until it didn’t. Until he lay awake at night, thinking of a different bed and a midnight when he didn’t feel so terribly alone. 

The first time she appeared to him in his Fade-dreamed version of their cove, he had not considered how dangerous it was for him to visit this once shared space. Coming here, he had allowed himself to once more indulge in his selfishness, indulge in the memory of what another world could have been like. One where she existed as more than the ghost of fingerprints on his skin. 

Had her name, whispered into his dreams, led her here? Had she brought herself? She had been resolute at their parting that she would not give up on him. So he had been resolute in giving up on her. I would not have you see what I become, he had told her. Truth.

But here she was- haunting his dreams.

He had reacted quickly, hiding himself away before she noticed his presence fully. Then he watched. He knew he should not, but he did anyway. A man dying of thirst, now drowning in an ocean. After that first night, he welcomed the flood. Soaked in its waters. If he could not cast her out of his heart, he could at least contain her in this cove of fantasy and possibility. The him who existed on these shores need not exist elsewhere. He could look upon his heart- know she was safe and far away from the Dread Wolf and the Din'anshiral he walked. 

So yes, he knows she dreams of this meadow often. Knows she has caught glimpses of him. Knows that if he seeks her out as he walks the Fade, she will find him. Knows that she searches for him. Knows that he should not encourage it. Lies to himself that it is okay like this, that he can be okay like this, watching her from afar. 

Var lath vir suledin.

At least this is the lie he allows himself to believe when he slips into dreaming at night, imagining a weight pressed to his chest and his arms winding around the greatest truth he has ever known. 

I wish it could, vhenan. Truth. 

My love…I will never forget you. Truth.

So much lying. And still too much truth. 

[fangirlingfromdownunder]

A Sweet Mishap - Chapter 34

Pairing - Jensen Ackles x Reader 

A/N: I just want to start by thanking everyone for all the love on this story so far. Let me know if you want to be added to the tag list. Please read the TW below and only read on if you feel comfortable doing so.

Also, Merry Christmas! I'm sorry I've been AWOL for the past few weeks, but I finally got a chance to write again and wanted to get this short part to you before Christmas. It will act as the finale to the first book of A Sweet Mishap - I definitely want to continue writing about this couple, but I think this is a nice way to wrap it up for the year and I'll come back with a sequel in the new year.

Potential Trigger Warnings: mentions of violence, rape, therapy, depression, sex

A Sweet Mishap Masterlist | Main Masterlist

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

I rise early, with the sun like usual despite not having to work today. I refuse to get out of bed until I absolutely have to. But I prop myself up with an obnoxious amount of pillows and drag my laptop over from the empty side of the bed onto my lap. I’m determined to submit all my assessments today before my session with Dr. Katelyn, slowly removing stresses one at a time.

I carefully read through each word and sentence making minor edits as I go and then with a deep breath hit submit on each one. For once, I actually feel highly confident with my essays, knowledge and with the grade that I hope to receive. Despite working myself to the bone all semester with so many priorities to balance I feel I actually managed to submit work that I’m proud of. I attribute it to my steadily improving mental health and clarity.

Once I close down my college tabs I decide to try to do a little planning of my own for the summer. Jensen’s organised so much, a lot that I don’t even know yet–just that he’s got surprises that I’ll like. I grew up in such a small area, yet I know he’s mostly lived in the larger cities, so my plan is to give him more of the country. I research diners and hiking trails and make sure some of my favorite spaces are still operating. The list of things I want to do is extensive, but I know, as much as I want to take the full three months, Stewie will need me back at Mamma Jo’s. He’s agreed to a month so far, but I could tell even that long concerned him. He only agreed becuase he knows he can rely on the juniors, which I promised to train up before I leave Thankfully, most of them have a lot of potential and are fast learners. As I’m searching through sites a Facetime notification pops up and I answer instantly.

“Hey Darlin’! You look comfy.”

“Good morning, Handsome. I am, but there is one thing that would make me comfier…”

“Less than a week and you can fall asleep in my arms every night for a month.”

“Except when we visit my parents…”

“Yeah, except then. But you’ll still be nearby, not a country away.”

“Yeah. I can’t wait! I was actually just researching places I want to take you back home.”

“Really? Any hints?”

I shake my head, “Nope! You’ve got your secrets, I’ve got mine.”

“Fair enough. You got therapy soon?”

“Two hours.”

“They’ll probably need me on set by then. I just wanted to check in while I had a chance.We’re pushing hard to be finished by Friday, I have no doubts. Then there’s just the wrap party that night, then I’ll see you.”

“I wish you could come to my last show…”

“I wish I could show you off at the wrap party. But it’s okay, we get a whole month together in Texas and that means so much more.”

“I really can’t wait. I submitted my assessments this morning, so I’ve just got therapy, a few more shows and my last few shifts at the cafe. I’m counting down each day and each road block. You know I’ve brocken so many of my New Years Resolutions, and I couldn’t be happier. And I owe most of that to you, so thank you.”

“Anything for you. I love seeing that smile on your face, especially knowing I helped put it there. But that’s just it, you’re doing all the work, I’m just here to cheer you on and offer support when you need it. You really are a star, I just want to watch you glow and reignite that spark that others tried to dim.”

I smile at him, then bite my lip as I remember I conversation from my last session with the doctor. “Jens…I thanks…Also, I’ve been meaning to…” He stays ever patient and smiles as I ramble, letting me get there on my own, “I talked to Dr Katelyn last week about my issues with intimacy and some fears, concerns, thoughts about our holiday. I know we’ll be alone alot and likely sharing a bed while we’re at your place and I just…I want to be open to things, but I feel like I’ve never-Nothing’s really ever been on my terms. I’ve always just gone along with what the guy wants. She suggested that maybe I should treat this relationship like a first. Like I’m in highschool and we’re touching each base. Slow and at my pace.”

He nods the whole time. “Of course. Everything is on your terms with me. I’d never push. I’m happy to cuddle, maybe make out and if we don’t have sex during the trip that’s fine. I don’t want you to feel pressured or like I’m expecting anything, because I’m not. I just want to spend time with you. And if you decide it’s too much to sleep in the same bed every night, you can go into the guestroom whenever you want. We can make sure it’s set up nicely for you so you can have a comfortable escape when you need it. A space that’s all yours and I won’t ever go into unless you want me to. We can set it up on the first day if you want. You can choose whatever decor you want.”

“Thanks. I appreciate that. But Jens, what if…What if I want to…you know, have sex at some point?”

“If we get through the first three bases and you are 100 per cent on board and comfortable with going the home run then we tackle that base like all the others. Slow and at your pace. And if we start and you need to stop then you just tell me and we stop, but I’ll be reading all the signs your body gives me and if I think it’s too much I’ll stop it, just like last time.”

I nod, “Okay. Do you mind if I continue to talk to Dr. Kate about it today?”

“I hope you do. But you never need my permission to talk about anything with her. There’s no NDA here, and even if there was it wouldn’t pertain to our relationship. Anything between us is fair game. I think you already know that, but I’ll remind you as much as you need, that will never change.”

“Thanks.” I glance down at the time on my computer screen. “I should start getting ready.”

“Alright, Beautiful. I’ll talk to you tonight. Have a good session and a great day.”

“You too-You have a great-You know what I mean.”

“I do. Bye.” He blows me a kiss as he ends the call and I can’t help but blush. As I drag myself out of the comfy bed and into the shower I think back to that day in December. I really did win the lottery when I accidentally spilt that hot cocoa on him. That was the best sweet mishap I’ve ever made.

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

Taglist: @stoneyggirl2 @hobby27, @n-o-p-e-never, @deansimpalababy,

@winchesterwild78, @kr804573, @chriszgirl92, @smoothdogsgirl

@speakinvain, @deans-baby-momma, @1967winchesterimpala

@lmg14, @superrey, @kamisobsessed

[hotluncheddie]

t4t chubby autistic steddie GO

i have been thinking about this (nsfw from twitter!!) art lately so i am here with u <3

even tho i get nervous to write trans characters, idk why, i just don't wanna mess it up i think

but im doing my best!! bc autistic and gender exploration are very lovely wonderful cozy subjects so i'm gonna focus on that

this is such a string of ideas but - 4 u <3 :3c

Stevie leaves with Eddie and Robin, taking their trust fund and leaving their parents to it - too the rest of their lives - without her. Like the Harringtons always hoped, really.

Stevie doesn't need them, the money is useful but they offer nothing more to her.

She's able to buy an apartment. In Chicago. With her loves. They learn how to live. How to live together. How to be at peace.

There's big bright widows in the main space, with light and air and the sunset. The two bedrooms are cozy and warm and it's a place for them all to grow.

'There's chips here.' Eddie says. They have a matching day off and she's trying to practice what it is to do nothing, to truly rest. Eddie helps, by being there, keeping her still with his hands and his love.

But Stevie tenses up, she was snacking, has been snacking, trying to learn her hunger signals better - what they feel like to her. It was always a rule not to east in her room, not to eat between meals. But she was hungry, she had a snack.

'I'm not judging, I'm saying so we remember to take it out next time one of us goes to the kitchen.' Eddie says, coming back from changing the tape, kissing her. Kissing her and kissing her.

Stevie relaxes.

'You've gained a little weight.' Robin says, laying on Stevies thighs on the couch, crocheting while Stevie watches sports and rubs her knuckles agains her teeth, twirling a strand of Robins hair in her fingers.

She looks down at her best friend. Robin looks back at her.

Robin smiles.

'It's good. You look more like you than you ever have before.'

Stevie smiles back. Tries not to cry.

Stevie letting herself change, relax. Unlearn those eating habits that helped her feel in control. Instead allowing herself to enjoy, and eat the things she wants to, the things she likes.

Eats pasta every night for a month and doesn’t feel bad about it. Doesn’t force herself to eat kale because she hates it, spinach is good enough. She is good enough.

Eddie gets little chubbier, in this new life. After recovering from nearly dying. Explains to Stevie in his long lilting way that he likes it, feels more protected, like his skin isn’t so fragile now.

He’s never liked his body but now he truly knows how short life is, and, maybe he can learn to like this new one. In this new place, in the love that surrounds him.

Plus, the bats destroyed his chest. So without that in the way, no longer lurking and potentially ruining his day. He realises he can shed that background fixation he always seemed to have with thinness. The idea that it would make him look more masculine or more androgynous. Curves were for girls and Eddie was not. That.

But now, now, who fucking cares. He’s alive. He needs to eat.

Steve feels a finger trailing over her hip, dipping into the band of her underwear, skimming over her crack and the the ridges of stretch marks that lead up to her waist.

'So so pretty' Eddie whispers, and it's filled with so much awe, so much grace, so much reverence and love.

Stevie shivers, feeling endless and grounded and like her body is here and hers and everything she ever dreamed of because it exists now.

She puts her hand under her loose shirt, cupping her belly. Skin still sleep warm and the energy of her palm seems to cover her whole body in warmth, in light and softness. Tinging and bright. Still being traced lightly by the love of her life. But being loves by her own hands, now, too.

She exists. And finally, everything is beautiful.

[matamisin]

I am absolutely living for the Stardew art. I love that game so much and have over 600 hours of playtime in it. I did have a little bit of a request but feel free to ignore! Could you rate all of the potential spouses based on your personal interpretations?

Hiii!! Yes yes yes thank you for this ask- I planned to do quick portraits anyways! <3 <3

But let's start!!

[PLEASE DO NOT REPOST, reblogs welcome! >:3c)

Harvey: 10/10

Handsome yes yes

Very sweet and loyal like bro LETS GO that's all I need

Doctor?? AKA he fixes up love interest who regularly gets into trouble? Endless possibilities BRO this is my favorite trope to write/draw about

HOWEVER HARVEY DOESN'T ACCEPT ANY INSURANCE HE JUST CHARGES OUR ASSES bro I'm trying to have a tender moment of almost dying and him worrying and then BOOM hands me my bill like "see you at home honey ily"

Overall he would treat us right yes

Animals LOVE his ass but he's awkward with them LOL

He's often a tired man due the clinic but he'll pull through to do things with the farmer when they're dating (like outings)

In the beginning when farmer is frequently getting hurt in the mines and being brought in hurt, he buys them a walkie-talkie. He's said multiple times that he doesn't recommend going in those dangerous places but learns that farmer's determined to keep going so he'll do what he can to make sure they can relay when they need help

He'll chime in on the walkie when he sees farmer going towards the mines and has them check things off a mental list (hi, this is Harvery- going to the mines? Do you have your weapon? How about food? You have your first-aid kit on you too right?)

This man will be TENSE the whole day when he knows farmer is in the mines. He'll only ease up once he knows they're not in there anymore

Disclaimer: from here on most of what I write will be 100% from my head because I haven't married anyone else yet LMFAO

Sam: 10/10

I interpret him as the golden retriever type- very hyper and friendly

That just makes him 1000% more loveable

HE'D TREAT US RIGHT

Very good with kids cause of Vincent which is like YES

A little blunt sometimes but that's wassup

Doesn't eat the best (AKA I give him two pizzas every week. Hmm. So maybe that means I'M the problem lol)

Also doesn't really know a lot of cooking, but when he moves in farmer finds new-looking cookbooks tucked away in his spaces

I feel like he'd be the type to have a switch in attitude- he's v friendly UNTIL he has reason to distrust/not like someone and then he'll flip from bright to cold (especially if the person has bad intentions about somebody he cares about)

Doesn't realize farmer and him are dating he just thinks they’re hanging out a lot and just kissing as really good friends

When he does realize they’re dating he gets all flustered and red

Would let you win at Mario-Kart

Despite his goofiness, he knows how to be a gentleman. He's always keeping an eye on farmer and making sure they're okay. If they're out together, the moment the sun goes down his jacket is on farmer's shoulders. When it's raining and he wakes up late and sees that farmer has gone out of the house for the day, he'll get up quick and run around with an umbrella and a thermos of hot coffee until he finds farmer. He'll follow farmer around with the umbrella covering mostly farmer, so he gets pretty drenched.

Very vocal about his love

Shane: 10/10

Ah the chicken man himself

ALSO GREAT WITH KIDS but in a different light- he's way more protective about them whereas Sam is more the laid-back and playful parent-figure (he throws his children into the air)

Recovering from his alcoholism and the habits that came with it (messiness and cluttery) but he's trying his best aww

Will rub his stubble on your face when he comes in for a hug ouchie

Even though he is not a dad- he just comes with dad stuff (dad outfits, dad jokes, EVERYTHING)

His chickens are protective of him so you must prove yourself worthy

(In my headcanons, Joja is kinda twisted) Will start to distance himself from Joja after farmer tells him of how they're trying to hurt the Junimos. He may eventually quit to work elsewhere, even though he doesn’t really know what Junimos are but something about farmer telling him about them seems sincere

He's very cuddly after getting to know him and dating. His love language happens to be physical touch and every touch makes him fall harder

This also means he gets a little sad when it's summer and too hot to cuddle that farmer turns around in their sleep. He gets pouty in the morning after until he gets a kiss LMAO

He'll frequently realize how messy he leaves his spaces, and will clean up. He tries to upkeep the cleanliness and manages it for a few days before it starts to get messy again. Sometimes it lasts a while, but sometimes it just slips his mind due to bad habits

Farmer pops into mind every time he has an urge to drink, and he'll shake it off and go do something else for them. He's DETERMINED to be the best person he can be for farmer

Alex: 10/10

A little rough at first lol- his attitude is very icky in the beginning BUT he's cute 

Once you get through that exterior he practically does a 180- HE'S SO SWEET AND CARING and no longer uhhh icky

He would tackle things for you (can he help farmer out of the mines when they pass out in the game? If he does I'd like to think he just picks them up and BOOKS it for the exit knocking anything in his path down LMFAO)

Becomes pouty when he gets a little jealous

Again he's very sweet- he kisses Evelyn and George on the cheeks every morning before he leaves the house, he often thinks about his late mom and visits her grave with flowers from Pierre's and has a small picnic there

I feel he would be prone to dreams about his mom, waking up in a cold sweat and tears. After the 8-heart event he gets up and does something sweet like making a whole breakfast for Evelyn & George or giving Dusty some quality time with walks, playing, and a good treat

Will be extremely protective over farmer. Farmer gives him a heart attack every time they go to the mines or the skull cavern or even in the sewer like baby what are you doing WHY ARE YOU GOING INTO THE MANHOLE

The caves he can't follow farmer with because he knows he isn't trained to fight monsters like farmer is and might hold them back instead, but he'll wait outside or tell Harvey that farmer's in the mines instead

Doesn't come out with it but he needs a lot of reassurance due to abandonment issues. He gets a little clingy and touchy but a little shy. (reaching for farmer’s hand/just pinching onto a part of the farmer’s clothes and holding on)

Sebastian: 10/10

This one might be rough cause I've never really felt much for him IM SORRY

Once farmer asks him out he's very unsure how to proceed. He'll call them things like dude and bro *with love*

It's literally like pulling teeth for him to call farmer honey just cause he's never been the affectionate type till now hehehe he'll try to say it and then drop to his knees like OTL and curl up (He'll get it eventually tho- this is just like the first few months LMFAO)

He has frogs right? He'll show you his frogs 

Your void chickens will love this emo boy they just vibe y'know?

He shows his love through acts of service and gifts, finding out the things you love and bringing them to you

As awkward as he is, his true intentions are very evident when he starts to really try to reconnect with Robin and asking her for advice on most anything he hasn't much a clue about.

He wants to be able to properly feel like part of his family, because farmer tells him that he deserves to feel loved there too. He’ll have a difficult heart-to-heart with Robin, Demetrius, and Maru and over time the family dynamic starts to heal. Sebastian is eternally grateful for farmer and tells them about the relationship and they’re all overjoyed to have farmer as part of the family too

He WILL stop smoking if farmer ever raises concern for his well-being

He starts to come out of his shell more (in general) as he and farmer progress their relationship. He tries his best to be a great partner, and everyone can sense that his demeanor is a little bit brighter than before. He starts to not be as shy about PDA too

He has many hoodies for farmer to steal HOWEVER they're all the exact same pair HAHAHA

Elliott: 10/10

I may also struggle with Elliott for similar reasons

Handsome right off the bat bro

But you'll never be able to be the one with the great hair in the relationship cause man he dominates in that

I see him as a gentle lover- very old-school romantic

He writes farmer love poems and songs often HE WILL SERENADE FARMER EVEN THOUGH HE'S ALREADY MOVED IN

Has pictures of farmer EVERYWHERE like his desk, in his books and notebooks, and has one of those accordion picture holders in his wallet of farmer and himself (and their child(ren) when time comes) He shows them off to the other villagers at the Saloon even tho they literally know farmer LMAOO

Has a very comforting vibe to him- he knows how to coddle farmer after they take a visit to the clinic

He'd let farmer use his favorite pen, trusting that it would return to him

Romantic gestures are EVERYWHERE. Songs, poems, so many pretty flowers in farmer's hair. 

I think he'd be the best cook out of everyone. Farmer wants to go out on a fancy date out of the village?? S'NOT GOOD ENOUGH- Elliott will change the whole decor of the kitchen and spend hours cooking and preparing for farmer to come home and then he plays all the roles (waiter, bus person, lover, etc) through the entire meal. But if farmer really actually wants to go out he'll go with it

Bachelorettes will be done in part 2 soon!

[iwonderwh0]

Emma: "This is Daniel, the coolest android in the world! Say hi, Daniel!"

Daniel: "Hello!"

Emma: "You're my bestie! We'll always be together!"

The thing is, Emma probably didn't even know anything about her father's plans to replace Daniel, and it is really possible that if she had a chance to get to know about it before Daniel, she'd be the one throwing a tantrum, potentially preventing anything that happened instead. Aside from just Emma, it was repeatedly mentioned throughout the game that kids actually love androids. For example there's this dialogue at the station that Markus can overhear:

Little girl, visibly upset, hugging herself: "Are we really going to get rid of Mandy?"

(Probably mother): "Grandma says it leaves her nothing to do, sweetie."

Little girl: "But she's so cool!"

Mother: "I know, honey."

Not only kids think they're cool, android-only band Here4You is even hitting the charts as one of the most popular among youngsters, whereas adults find them really creepy and soulless. Another overhead dialogue from the same chapter:

"I heard that android boyband is going to win sone music prize"

"You mean Here4You? God, they're so creepy.

"My kids don't listen to anything else."

From adult's POV this attachment is interpreted as just another form of phone/internet/social-media/[insert anything else young people are accused of liking too much]-addiction, because most of them are too angry at CyberLife to comprehend that their kids may actually like androids for who they are as people in their lives, for being their safe space of a kind, and not because they're just addicted to that fancy toys to play with (although there probably are some kids who'd see them exactly this way. There always are.)

It was truly a misfortune that Daniel got so overwhelmed by the news that he instantly became fatalistic instead of pausing to really think about it first, to maybe consider that this decision may not have been a collective one, and there's still a chance -- maybe a small one, but still the one worth looking into -- to cancel it by talking, asking Emma about if she knows (because she probably didn't) instead of instantly going for the gun to take revenge on everyone as equally guilty. Instead of asking, he instantly assumed the worst – that Emma's opinion in the matter will be the same as her father's, and that was his main mistake. Daniel must have had really good relationships with the whole family including the father who as it turned out didn't think of him as a person, but rather a replaceable object – something Daniel never expected or even considered before, which, by the way, only further implies just how much he was actually loved for this information to be this unexpected and this world-shattering. He never saw it coming AT ALL (and in a generally anti-android society it really is telling) so this unexpected truth basically overwritten everything he ever knew about his life and world as a whole, making him feel like a fool for not seeing it earlier.

In this sense he's really similar to Connor when he realised that CyberLife never loved him, that he in fact is NOT special, not an exception from the rule, and was only used as an expendable object. There really is a parallel here. Except for Connor this knowledge didn't came with an anger, but with guilt for his previous actions (and, you know, Connor was actually right about it while Daniel could have potentially made a mistake in interpreting it the way he did)

So "Daniel never saw it coming because he was only surrounded by love" is one theory, but now I wanna consider a different one, being –

He was never going to be replaced on the first place,

Philips family is just insanely rich and John decided that he can afford to buy one more android, because why not? The one they have is great, and their enormous apartment with giant gold statues of Buddha and big-ass pool area would benefit from another pair of hands. It's possible that this decision wasn't even planned, but just an impulsive purchase done by someone who's so rich that spending nearly 10K is not a big deal.

And in this case, maybe Daniel's suspicion accumulated over a period time of him hearing how other androids are talked about outside of Philip's family and always thinking "For me it's different – they actually love me for who I am and will never replace like that. They're not like those other people, they're different, I'm different." And then him seeing that purchase was just...the last straw that was needed for him to apply all those previous already existing suspicions to his own situation and finally consider that they might actually apply to him, resulting in him drawing those depressing conclusions that if true would mean that his whole life has been a lie that he was just too stupid to be able to see through.

So there's at least a small chance that it was all a result of just a big misjudgement and/or could be avoided if dialogue was Daniel's first choice of action instead of him getting blinded by his anger and urge to take revenge on those who -- at least from his immediate understanding of the situation -- betrayed him.

[piedpiperart]

Phantom in Gotham pt 2

Chapter one

The next week, Tim asked Dick for advice about Danny. 

"And he's your age?" Dick frowned, leaning forward on the living room couch to rest his elbows on his knees. He had ha;f a cucumber sandwich in his hand, courtesy of Alfred. Meanwhile Tim was sipping his fourth coffee for the day. 

"Yeah," Tim sighed,"I'm just worried about him. He doesn't look like he's eating or sleeping very much, and I don't know. I just want to make sure he's safe at home or something. He’s actually really smart and funny too, I think you’d like him. I just don’t want to freak him out in case Batman hears about this and decides ‘Bruce’ needs to get involved, you know?"

Dick hummed, ruffling Tim's hair. His little brother was so caring, he cooed in his head. "I'll check it out. You said he goes to the library after school a lot of the time?" 

Tim nodded. "Steph and I may have followed him once or twice. I asked Barbara if she'd seen him, and apparently he goes to the library after school every day. He does his homework and then usually falls asleep until closing at seven."

Dick frowned at that. It was becoming more obvious that the kid was not in a good situation, or at the least was avoiding home. "I'll tail him when he leaves the library,"Dick reassured. "I know you're busy with the whole ghost stuff going on."

"Thanks,"Tim sighed. He also didn't want to have Danny recognize him somehow as Red Robin. It was unlikely, but not impossible. Plus, getting Dick to look into it would just give him more people on the 'Protect Danny' team. Tim was obviously president, with Steph as Co-president. With Dick on their side they’d be able to gang up on Bruce to get the kid adopted if everything turned out the way he thought it would. Of course, Tim knew it was probably unlikely, but he had to admit someone else in the family that was his age and didn’t want to kill him would be nice. 

“You really care about him, huh?” Dick said suddenly. 

“Uh, yeah?” Tim said, tilting his head to look at Dick. “He’s only been at school a month or so but he hangs out with Steph and I every day. He’s really into space, and super smart, like I’m pretty sure he’s a genius at physics and engineering.” Tim sut his rambling off, feeling his cheeks flush in embarrassment. Surely Dick didn’t need to know Danny’s hobbies. 

“Just a friend?” Dick hummed. Tim narrowed his eyes at Dick’s suddenly mischievous attitude. 

“Yeah?” Tim said hesitantly. “”Why?”

“Oh, nothing,”Dick smiled, getting up from the couch to bring his plate to the kitchen.

“Wait no- Dick what do you mean?” Tim stammered, putting his coffee down to follow. “Dick!”

-------------------------------------------

Dick had called Barbara about Tim's friend, and even the red haired vigilante was worried about the poor kid. Apparently he was there every night, and Babs was just about to contact him to do something about him. Dick didn't understand what she meant by the ‘new little brother’ joke she'd made until he laid eyes on the kid. He’d nearly laughed when he caught sight of the black hair and blue eyes. Maybe Tim wanted another sibling, one that wouldn't stab or shoot him, Dick mused. 

Still, he followed the kid to a convenience store, frowning at the kid's yawn. If the apparent lack of sleep was worrying, the fact that the kid only got a bag of cheetos and a can of strawberry tea was even more concerning. Still, Dick hopped the roofs from afar, hoping the kid would at least have someone home to look out for him.

Dick's hopes were dashed when the kid made his way further towards Crime Alley. 

Ignoring the fact that he was potentially infringing on Jason's territory, Nightwing perched on a building across from the old pizzeria, watching the kid skillfully climb the fence around the place with a sinking feeling. Dick sighed. So, apparently Danny was living in the abandoned pizzeria. Great. Jason would definitely want to know about this.  

Dick's heart ached for the kid. He hoped Danny was finding ways to get food that wouldn't get him in trouble. Considering that he was still able to afford a spot at Gotham Academy, it seemed he had some sort of savings. Just, maybe not for things outside of school.  Dick frowned. How that worked he wasn’t so sure. The school would have to know those things, right? If he was living like that, then how could he be going to such a rich school?

Dick sat back further on the roof, making a note to look into Danny’s spot at the school when he heard heavy footsteps land on the roof. However, Dick's eyes were still on the Pizzeria, hoping that Danny didn't actually live there despite the overwhelming amount of evidence pointing to the contrary. Maybe the kid was passing through. Or it was a clubhouse of sorts. 

"Wing," Red Hood grumbled, coming to a stop a few feet away. "Whatcha doin' here?"

"Sorry,"Danny sighed, running a hand through his hair. If he had looked up he’d see Jaso towering over him with the iconic red helmet on. "I don't mean to trespass, I was just tailing one of Tim's friends."

"Timbo's friend? What'd the kid do to get Nightwing to follow him all the way to Crime Alley? He in some kind of trouble?" Hood huffed. Or the kid is trouble, Jason thought. 

"Not exactly," Nightwing started, glancing back at the building Danny disappeared into. Still nothing.  "Tim was worried about him. Kid didn't seem to be eating or sleeping well, and was hanging at Babs' library until close. We thought maybe he was a runaway, but he’s going to Gotham Prep so he has to have some sort of funds, except tonight I followed him until he went into the Pizzeria."

Hood whistled, crouching next to his brother. "Think he's living there? Not really a good place for a kid by himself."

"Yeah," Dick agreed. He paused before adding, "Danny's a good kid. If you could maybe look out for him when you can?"

Hood paused, looking towards the dilapidated building. "Yeah, alright. But you and Tim owe me," Dick huffed a laugh. "Can't be having a kid out here all alone, especially with winter coming up. I'll see if I can talk to him eventually."

"Please don't scare him too much," Dick grinned. If he knew one thing about Jason, it was that he had a soft spot for kids. 

"So, what's the kid look like? Because if you say black hair and blue eyes I'm going to shoot you." Hood added. Dick simply smiled mischievously, causing Jason to let out a groan. "Seriously? Get out of here."

“I’m pretty sure Tim might just be looking for a new sibling. That or he has a crush.”Dick laughed, standing up and patting the dust off himself. "You'll still keep an eye out?"

Hood waved him off tiredly. "Yeah yeah, I'll look after the newest brother." He shook his head fondly at the cackle Dick let out as he grappled away. 

Looking towards the shoddy Pizza place, Hood sighed. Obviously he wouldn't turn the kid in to CPS, but with winter coming up the kid might need someone looking out for him. There was no way the heating still worked in that place, and Jason was pretty sure one of the walls had a giant bat-sized hole in it. Maybe he’d check out the place while the kid was at school, just to see if he had everything he needed. 

Though, Jason grinned, maybe he could have a little fun messing with his future baby brother before Bruce got his hands on him. Scaring the kid out of crime alley and into a shelter would be a good start. 

It had been over a month since Danny'd stepped foot in Amity Park. It had just gotten too dangerous for him to stay after... that day. The GIW had been getting more intense, so Danny had already been on edge when the news broke.

His parents were partnering with the GIW. It meant extra funding, equipment, but it also meant Agent K and the others had more access to deadlier weapons- which made his job defending people from ghosts and ghosts from people even harder. Danny had obviously been upset at first, and had called Jazz to come home from college to help him persuade their parents against it. 

Jack and Maddie were set on the partnership though, and Danny tried explaining to his parents why it would be a bad idea. Things escalated, and Danny had told them again about how ghosts aren't bad- they're not evil, they're sentient and they have feelings. Jack and Maddie had become eerily suspicious, and started thinking he was possessed. Like the only reason why he’d be advocating for ghosts was because he was one.

Things took a bad turn from there. They’d tried to trap him, which worked since he’d been Danny at the time. His transformation was an accident though, due to one of their crazy inventions activating his rings. Jack and Maddie were shocked, of course, when he'd accidentally revealed he was Phantom. He was terrified of their reactions- had been ever since he'd had the accident a year ago. Jack and Maddie had... not reacted well, to say the least. They hadn't immediately gone for their weapons, though, so Danny had stayed calm, hoping to talk things out. He thought maybe they just needed to hear his side of things. He hoped they'd accept him.

Danny had been wrong.

Waking up strapped to a table in the lab not long after being zapped by the net that had trapped him, he realized there was probably nothing he could do to convince them he was still their son. Danny had to finally admit he was scared of his parents. The realization hurt far worse than the wounds they gave him. Jazz was his only saving grace, and he thanked the Ancients he was able to call her to come home before it all went down.

Jazz hadn't heard from Danny at all after he’d called the first time, so when she'd come home it was to her parents sleeping soundlessly and her brother half-conscious and bleeding out in the basement, strapped to a table like some sort of lab experiment. She was horrified. Nearly crying her eyes out, she struggled to get Danny out of there and patch up his wounds. She did the best she could to stop the bleeding while keeping her eyes away from the various filled jars on the counter. Jazz knew that she and Danny were no longer safe with Jack and Maddie, so she started making plans.

First, she called Tucker and Sam to let them know of the situation, while she took Danny and the Specter Speeder into the Ghost Zone. She knew that was the only place her parents wouldn't be able to follow. Danny had also said before that the Far Frozen had people he could trust, as well as medical equipment that surpassed the human realm. The Yeti, who Jazz had forgotten the name of as soon as he'd said it, was horrified at what had happened, and reassured Jazz he would be well taken care of while she was making arrangements. She’d stayed a few moments to wash the greenish red blood off her hands before pulling herself together. She almost couldn’t bear to leave him alone again, but she knew there were things to get done in the human realm.

Jazz had some of the plans outlined in a worst-case scenario like this, but she'd never thought it would actually happen. Nevertheless, she was grateful that they’d made plans like this. Back in the house, she'd trashed the lab as much as she could, unfortunately, waking her parents in the process. Luckily, she’d destroyed the jars of suspicious green and red liquids before that, and she stormed out before they could say anything. Actually, they might’ve said a lot, but Jazz was not listening. Jazz no longer had anything to say to Jack and Maddie. In her mind, they were a hopeless case. They'd done something irreversible, and she no longer thought of them as her parents. Not after they had... dissected her little brother. The thought made her stomach turn, and she wiped away tears she didn't think she still had in her.

After her third short breakdown, she composed herself and kept going. Someone had to be the adult in this situation, and her little brother needed her. Jazz fought back the memories of Danny- so small, laying on that lab table, so much blood, her baby brother- and got to work. She'd had some of the paperwork filled out before, mostly regarding school records, applications, and personal information, then had contacted Tucker to help with the rest. Such as fake ID, birth certificate, etc.

Jazz knew her parents wouldn't rest until they had Danny back. Them and the GIW both. Thankfully, her parents were dumb enough to think that Phantom-Danny had been a ghost, and had kidnapped their real son, so the secret of Halfas was still safe. She knew Danny wasn't safe in Amity Park, and Danny's friends agreed. Jazz was glad Sam and Tucker hadn’t seen Danny strapped to the table, but judging by their faces, they could imagine. She made a note to talk to them afterwards as a therapist to make sure they were coping well. The three of them had met up at Tucker’s house, tears and blood- in Jazz's case- on all of their faces. After quick hugs and reassurances that Danny was alive and they'd get him when everything was ready, the three of them continued with their plans.

Sam was in charge of a go-bag. Danny would need clothes, food, medical supplies, ghost gear- just in case - and other supplies. Tucker dealt with funds- stealing from Vlad was like taking candy from a baby- fake ID, and other important forgeries. Meanwhile, Jazz got to work on paperwork. She figured schooling was most important, besides housing, and got everything set up from there. A few dozen calls and stolen funds, and Danny would be living in Gotham. Her brother would be renting a small apartment and attending a private school, with plenty of funds in his new bank account. It would be the least likely place for their parents to look for him. They kept Danny as his first name, but combined their own into a fake last name to throw off the trail. They didn't have many options with Manson and Foley, but they were too worried about their friend/brother to get too creative with it. The simpler the better.

Danny would now be Daniel Folson, resident of Gotham for a few months. The three of them figured it would be too difficult to remember a full name change, and the fact that Danny was a pretty common name would work in their favor. No one would look for him around Gotham anyway. Or so they hoped. 

Unsure about the extent the GIW or the Fentons would go to to find Danny, they prepared for the worst. That is, if the police got involved, which was likely considering a day after Jazz had dumped Danny in the Ghost Zone, Maddie and Jack had filed a missing persons report on Danny. Since there were no guarantees that Vlad wouldn't get involved either, they had to be thorough. Jazz was not completely confident that Vlad could be convinced to their side, so she didn't bother with telling him anything. The only thing Jazz could trust Vlad to do was to be a fruitloop, and no one needed his smarmy help in anything this serious. Jazz was forever grateful that Tucker was as good with computers as he was, and she made a note to help him get into a good college when he graduated. Though she figured he could probably hack his way into any college he wanted.Either way, Vlad would be none the wiser to his missing funds, and wouldn’t be able to use Technus to track Danny down. 

After they'd gotten all the supplies and paperwork ready to send Danny away- no one was happy about it but they knew things were about to spiral down from here- Tucker warned Dani of the situation, telling her not to come back anytime soon, and while she was worried and angry, she agreed. Dani had the task of leaving ecto-signatures in places far from Gotham in order to keep the trail off Danny while he healed. After a month or so of that, Dani would be okay to keep traveling around like usual. They'd keep in contact though, more than before. Jazz and Tucker were setting her and Danny up with weekly check-ins and emergency beacons and things like that. Tucker’s main job was keeping those two safe, and there was no way the two halfas were getting captured on his watch. 

The Ghosts had heard what happened from Frostbite, and after a slight kidnapping of Ember, they made sure she warned the ghosts to stay in the zone for as long as possible. In a show of solidarity, Skulker had caused a distraction downtown for the GIW and Fentons while Jazz, Sam and Tucker went to get Danny and explain the plan to him.

Danny was... heartbroken. Traumatized. Weak and still healing. Jazz was surprised to see her brother had mutated even more in his ghost form, and now sported pointier ears, paler skin and sharp fangs. They'd eventually talked Danny into leaving for Gotham- not without many tears and arguments- with the help of Frostbite and a visit from Clockwork. All of them hoped it wouldn't be forever, but with the way things were in Amity, things were unlikely to be resolved so soon. Especially with the Fentons joining the GIW. They’d promise that once he was out and things settled, they’d start to form a plan. If it was possible, they’d try to get into contact with the Justice League again. 

Flying alone to Gotham was the hardest thing Danny had ever done, and thought of turning back many times. He didn't. His friends and Jazz would be disappointed and worried out of their minds for him if he did. And he had to admit, they had a plan. He had to protect them and himself. The humming in his chest emanating from his core latched onto the fact that he was protecting everyone by leaving. The ghosts would be safe if they stayed in the zone, and Danny couldn’t stay in Amity or the Zone forever. He couldn’t be Danny Fenton or Phantom in Amity anymore. In Gotham, he could at least be Danny Fenton. Or Folson. He would be alone, but they'd find ways to check in on him when it was safe. He just had to deal with being alone for a while. No big deal. He could do this.

He couldn't.

The first few weeks were the hardest. Danny started school almost immediately, eager for some kind of distraction from the pain of leaving his friends and family behind. Because Jazz was his only family now that his parents were... hunting him. Had hurt him. Jazz was his only family now besides Ellie and he couldn’t even talk to them anymore. No one knew what Technus was up to so communication was only for emergencies and check-ins. 

Moving to Gotham would have been fine. It would have been fine, if not for the shabby apartment Jazz had set up for him bursting into flames. Something about a villain from Gotham who liked to torch stuff. Firefly, maybe. Danny wasn't sure, but he'd been able to stake out a place to live in an old building. Danny thought it used to be an old pizza place. He'd been able to stash his stuff in the rickety old attic and set up a meager living space with his sleeping bag and other supplies that Sam packed him. His wounds were still aching a bit, but his advanced healing had helped him a lot. Since he woke up from…that, he’d been able to absorb a lot more ectoplasm than he usually did. It was odd, and since he found out he could absorb ectoplasm from anywhere in the human realm, he didn’t need to eat human food nearly as much as he had before. He was down to maybe one meal a day. He could still eat three if he wanted, but the ectoplasm was more than enough to sustain him. It felt weird to eat so much food he didn’t even need. 

There was no way he could contact Jazz about the apartment though, and he knew to use the money in his account sparingly. Danny wasn't sure he'd tell Jazz about his living situation if she'd called anyway. There probably wouldn’t be anything anyone could do at this point. Hacking Vlad’s bank account had been fine the first time, but multiple times would tip the fruitloop off. Danny had rather not have to deal with the fruitloop on his trail too. If everything went to plan, Vlad would be chilling in Wisconsin and not even know about his disappearance until Jack or Maddie called him about it. Given how distracted they were, it should give them a few weeks or so. 

The phone he had been given looked old, but it was Tucker approved safe from pretty much anything. Only to be used in case of emergencies for now, since everyone back home was looking into his friends and searching for him. Danny didn’t count being semi-homeless as an emergency. As a Halfa, he didn’t need to sleep as much as a human either, especially not since his strange new mutation, and that was pretty much all he needed a house for. It was weird to think that his second near-death experience caused him to become more like a ghost, and wondered if he’d just lose his human half over time. He really didn’t want to think about that though. 

Living at the Pizzeria would be fine. The only thing he worried about was his friends and sisters, because at this point Ellie was more like his sister than anything else. Maybe after everything started to die down Danny would be able to contact them. He’d be able to hear their voices. 

He could admit, he missed their voices. Hell, he even missed Dash. So far he'd made a few sort of friends at Gotham Academy; Tim, who drank enough coffee it probably replaced his blood at this point, Steph, who reminded him of if Sam and Star combined into the same person, and Conner, who might or might not be Tim's boyfriend, but he wasn't going to ask. He was pretty sure Conor might also be goth, but he wasn’t sure. It might be weird to ask. Danny thought they were nice, but he didn't want to get close to someone only for him to disappear one day. He didn't want to lose more friends. There was nothing they could do to help him anyways, no ghosts for them to help him catch, no all-meat or vegetarian lunches in the cafeteria to riot about, nothing out of the ordinary. Danny didn’t want to get more people involved in his problems. They might get hurt, and he didn’t want that.

Danny's new place was, for lack of a better word, not ideal. He showered at a nearby gym at night, which was easier because he could turn invisible, and slept in the attic of the abandoned pizzeria. He found it more comfortable to sleep during lunch at school, or at the library, though, so he used the pizzeria for storing his stuff. Since he'd found the library, he'd been going everyday after school to do homework until he fell asleep in one of their comfy bean bags. He was surprised to find he was actually doing well in school now without the constant ghost attacks, or mishaps with his powers. Who knew he was actually pretty smart. Definitely not him. Or Dash. Now that he thought about it, Danny was pretty sure Lancer knew he was wasting his potential. He wondered if his old teacher missed him in class. Probably not. 

The Library closed around 7 though, and usually a nice librarian named Barbra would very politely wake him and kick him out. He'd then get a snack for dinner and then wander around in his ghost form invisibly. Danny didn't actually need to eat as much, considering his ghost form just leeched ectoplasm from his surroundings constantly now- something he learned from Frostbite’s lectures. Danny was just glad he wouldn’t have to make trips into the Zone to get the ectoplasm he needed. 

Speaking of his ghost form, he wasn't stupid enough to use it in Gotham. Even though Dash would argue otherwise about his smarts, Danny knew having the Gotham vigilante's attention would be a bad thing. The Justice League and affiliates were government approved, so any heroes who were in contact with him would be obligated to turn him in to the GIW according to the Anti-Ecto Act. Anything with ectoplasm was no longer sentient and sadly that included Danny. So, he figured staying invisible as much as possible would work in his favor. 

As a ghost, his core obsession to protect people determined his actions a lot more than he wanted it to. At first, he was fine with protecting himself, and staying out of the way. He'd caught glimpses of the vigilantes from afar and was not planning on introducing himself anytime soon. But his core urged him to help. The humming had only gotten stronger, and it made him extremely anxious to not help people every day. After a few days, he was wandering at night, unable to sleep in the dark attic of the Pizzeria- and also not needing as much sleep as a regular person. With no ghost attacks late at night or homework to catch up on, he was more than a little restless.                                                                                                                                                                                         

Danny had stuck to his goal of staying invisible on his nightly trips, but he'd do small things. Trip up a burglar, ice someone’s shoe to the ground, phase a gun out of someone's hand, the small stuff. Danny's core hummed with warmth whenever he managed to help a random citizen and keep the bad guys from doing any harm. He was so used to fighting ghosts, he wasn't sure how to go about fighting regular humans. Danny was very very afraid of going too far or using too much strength. Even on top of the fact that most of his weapons were only effective against ghosts. He couldn't stuff a robber into a thermos.... probably. 

So he left actual crime fighting to the Bats. Danny had gotten curious a few times, and tried to follow them across rooftops. It was easier considering he could fly, but he was still in awe at how they effortlessly moved through the shadows and jumped roofs with ease. Danny found himself tagging along more than he planned to, but the way the vigilante's bantered back and forth reminded him of his friends back home. It was… nice. And he’d already learned a lot about crime fighting with actual humans just by watching them. It was interesting to see how different Ghosts were in comparison. Danny himself would stick to small stuff, and leave the rogues to the Bats, but he tailed them as much as possible to help lessen their load or keep an eye on them. 

After one close call with a gun and an unaware Robin, Danny figured he could help out a bit and they wouldn’t mind. His core hummed louder around the Bats, and it felt…nice to feel like he was a part of things. He was invisible, and surely they wouldn't notice him knocking a gun astray, or a rock thrown at a random goon for a distraction. Danny was helping, but not getting involved in the big stuff, just like he’d promised. It wasn't like he was a vigilante, just… support from afar. It had taken a shorter amount of time than Danny thought it would for them to notice their apparent 'good luck'. 

The Bats had started noticing the small hiccups their villains were having, but didn't know why or where it was coming from, or if it was simply a coincidence. It started with staring. A few times, Danny had to hold back laughter as Red Robin examined a broken flower pot a little too seriously after he'd pushed it off a ledge towards a guy with a gun aimed at the vigilante. He knew he should probably stop following the vigilantes, but he was worried about them. Robin was just so small, and his core hummed happily whenever he protected them in some small way. 

Danny fully blamed his obsession for the bat-stalking he'd been doing. Sure, he helped people when the bats weren't around still, but it was less lonely with the group, and his core had latched onto the family. He wasn’t completely sure if it was because he was missing his own family, but Danny felt better around the Bats. He’d give them their secrecy though, and didn’t pursue them anytime they were on their way home. He didn’t care about their identities as long as they more or less let him tag along. 

The initial suspicion dissipated after a few weeks, and Danny was amused and appreciative when they started to try to communicate with him. Robin mostly ignored him after telling the empty alleyway seriously that he would not tolerate threats, and if he hurt the other vigilante's in any way, Robin would dispose of him. It was funny, but Danny had no doubt the kid would find some way to do it if the ghost crossed the little kid. 

Red Robin, when he was alone, would ask Danny questions. He figured out Danny was willing to communicate by moving objects, and asked questions to confirm some worries. It started with "Why are you helping us?" To which Danny had just kicked an empty can lightly towards the vigilante. From then, Red Robin had figured out a yes or no system that would help get him answers. Danny had fun answering the questions when there was time.

"Okay, uh, kick the can for yes, and the rock for no. Are you going to hurt us?" One kick to the rock. 

"Are you... helping us?" Red Robin asked, raising an eyebrow behind the mask, and Danny cheered internally while kicking the can. He hoped the vigilantes would let him continue to help. “I mean, you have been helping us, but you really don’t need to. We’re professionals.” 

Danny shrugged, floating a few feet in the air, but Red Robin couldn’t see that. Of course Danny knew they’d be fine without him, but he was, for lack of a better word, bored. And they reminded him of his family back home. Without his ‘nightly job’, he had no doubt that his core would reduce him to an anxious ball of goop. 

"Are you…in trouble?" Red Robin said after, and Danny wasn't sure how to respond. He thought for a moment, but before he could do anything, Robin followed up with,"We can help you." to which Danny had kicked the rock in a burst of panic. No, no, no.  He didn't want the bats in his business. For his own safety as well as theirs. No telling what the GIW would do. 

Red Robin frowned at that, but took a seat in the alley. The vigilante seemed to be thinking of a question, but Danny stayed around, eager for some sort of conversation that wasn't from school. And a part of him felt that, if the vigilantes knew what was happening in Amity they’d help. Even if they had to go against the government. Well, he hoped. Tucker had mentioned trying to contact the Justice League about their issue before. "So you need help, but don't want ours." Danny kicked the can. The vigilante thought for a moment longer, then decided to stop pushing for the time being.

"Are you a ghost?" Danny kicked the can, laughing silently at the incredulous face Red Robin made in response. "What the fuck,"He'd muttered, then froze abruptly. "Are you haunting me?"

Just for laughs, Danny kicked the can. Red Robin paled, belatedly reaching for his comm or a weapon, but Danny kicked the rock after a second, making the kid let out a breath of air. The vigilante looked around the alleyway "That was a joke, right?"

Danny kicked the can, shoulders shaking from trying to contain his laughter. "Very funny, almost gave me a heart attack,"He mumbled. A second later, he stood up, brushing himself off.  "You should hang out with Nightwing more, I'm sure he'd love to play pranks with you sometime. As long as they aren't on me,"Red Robin added. 

"Are you... older than Eighteen?" Red Robin asked suddenly, and Danny kicked the rock nonchalantly.”Alright, younger then. And you’re a ghost.”  After a pause, he asked. "Are you lonely?" 

Danny left after kicking the can. He didn't want to talk about it, but figured it would be rude to not answer at least. And he was lonely. Danny missed Jazz, and Sam and Tucker and Ellie. At that point he'd been in Gotham a few weeks and it had been just as long since he'd seen any sign of the ghosts too. He hoped everyone was okay. Danny missed his family so much his core ached. And a part of him hoped Red Robin would talk to him more or let him patrol with them if Red knew he was lonely. 

Nightwing was one of his favorite vigilantes to stalk. He'd been a little caught off guard the first few times, but after a while it seemed Nightwing was happy to have someone to chat with. After Danny had phased the gun out of someone's hand, Nightwing had continued fighting without pause, but after all the thugs were tied up he'd put his hands on his hips and looked around for where Danny might be. "Thanks for the assist Casper!" Nightwing had called out. "I don't know if you're still here, but-"

 Danny knocked over a tupperware container on the ground, and Nightwing relaxed. "Oh, sweet you’re here. That’s mildly terrifying actually,” He rambled. “You know, I have a few more places to patrol, wanna race?"

And since that time, Nightwing somehow roped him into a bunch of activities to keep his mind off Amity Park. Usually, Danny would find some subtle way to let the vigilantes know he was with one of them for the night, like tap them, or toss a rock in their direction. Physical contact wasn't usually received well, so he didn't do it often. He could tell it really unnerved Batman, but he also didn't follow Batman as much as the others. Danny was a bit intimidated. Okay, he was a lot intimidated.  

Same with Robin. He hung around him a lot since the kid was fun to annoy, and he was worried about him going off on his own sometimes. The kid had said on numerous occasions that he was more than capable and did not need assistance from a mere ghost. Danny thought Robin and Batman were pretty similar. 

So, Danny avoided touching the vigilantes as much as possible. Except for that time when Nightwing asked him to phase through him. That had been pretty funny. He'd then convinced Danny to do it to Red Robin when they met up with him, and then Robin when the kid showed up asking why they were meeting without him. Nightwing had laughed his ass off, Robin had threatened to exorcize him, and it was hard for Danny to keep quiet. It was times like those he’d go back to the pizzeria with a smile on his face. 

From there, they'd sometimes give Danny little tasks to complete, like pass notes back and forth, -or in Nightwing’s case he passed jokes- check in on one of them, or to scope out a building and tell them how many people were inside by using rocks or tapping. It made him feel useful, and it reminded him of his friends back home. Like he was part of a team. It was nice. 

Danny was less lonely at night with the vigilantes. He hardly slept in his dingy little crawl space, opting to spend his nighttime with the heroes and get an hour or so of sleep at school or the library. He still didn't need to eat as much as before the lab accident, so the snacks he got in the morning from Tim, lunch at school, and the meal he ate after the library was fine to keep him going. Danny could tell he was worrying Tim a bit, but he figured the guy was just being polite. Even though Danny didn’t need to eat much, he still ate the snacks Tim brought him, to reassure the shorter kid that he wasn’t starving himself. He'd spent a few more hours sleeping before school to make up for it, hoping his eye bags weren't as prominent as they had been lately. As a newly mutated Halfa, he didn’t need to sleep more than four hours a night usually, and if he was avoiding sleep due to nightmares, well, that was for him to know.

A month of doing his not-vigilante but kind of vigilante thing, he was finally getting some sort of rhythm. He'd received a message from Tucker not too long ago detailing that he, Sam Ellie, and Jazz were fine. None of the ghosts had been caught by the GIW and they'd been setting some traps for the guys in white and Danny's parents. He could tell Sam was having a bit of vindictive pleasure with setting the traps to slow them down. Danny was pretty sure he heard something about a scoreboard. Meanwhile, Jazz was still being monitored by the Fentons.The GIW had been told of Danny's ghost-possessing, and the city's police force was still poking their nose around. Tucker had said Vlad had been seen talking to the Fentons, so it was likely the fruitloop- and by proxy Skulker or Technus- would get involved. Technus would be bad for Danny, so Tucker said it might be a while until the next check in and promised to delete anything remotely close to their correspondence. Danny had given a short message in response and a good luck text.

Danny felt his core hum in dismay, fingers twitching with the need to help, but he knew he couldn't go back. He still hated that the three of them had to solve his problems for him but… Part of him was glad he wouldn't have to go back there. Even the thought of the Fenton's basement sent shivers down his spine. So he tried to keep his mind off things, going to school and the library, then supporting the vigilantes at night. Danny sighed, knowing it could always get worse, and that his situation was temporary. He was lucky that his parents hadn't shipped him off to the GIW the moment he’d shown them Phantom. Danny wasn't sure he'd have been able to count on Jazz to get him out if that had happened.

Everything changed when Danny ran into the Red Hood one night.

He'd been following Nightwing, who was heading towards an area they usually stayed away from, when Red Hood showed up with his guns drawn. "I assume there's a reason you're in my territory?"

Danny didn't follow along with their conversation much, too busy trying to figure out why his ghost sense was acting up. He floated around the two, and the closer he got to Red Hood, the more his ghost sense flared. Was Red Hood like him? He passed in front of the red helmet, waving his arms. Danny's arms dropped to his side when he realized Hood couldn't see him like other ghosts could when he was invisible. Soon, when Nightwing jumped gracefully to another roof, Danny decided to follow Red Hood.

Watching him after a while, Danny could tell the Red Hood knew he was there. Or at least, could sense his presence. Danny wasn't sure if Red Hood was a halfa like him, or some kind of meta. It was interesting, because while he couldn’t feel any kind of core, he could still sense ectoplasm on the guy. What caused it? Did Red Hood generate ectoplasm himself? Danny wasn’t sure, no matter how long he stared at him. Either way, he could feel some type of ectoplasm coming off of Hood in small waves. It felt a lot like the ring of rage, and Danny shivered at the memory.

Suddenly, Red Hood drew a gun and pointed it to where Danny's head was. Caught up in his own thoughts, Danny was so startled he'd accidentally dropped his invisibility, letting out a small squeak. "A kid?" He heard Hood mutter, before the guy went into interrogation mode. "Who are you and why have you been following me?"

Danny stared wide eyed, willing himself to respond. "Uh- you, um," Danny stammered, trying to figure out how to explain that Danny was following him because he was possibly a halfa or contaminated with ectoplasm. "You um, you feel like a ghost."

Red Hood froze, and Danny scrambled to explain, floating away from the gun and waving his hands in a panicked way. He made sure to give Hood his space and not look threatening, but he felt like he needed to explain. One of the vigilantes was like him, meaning there was a possibility that they were hiding from the GIW too. Was Red Hood in hiding already? Did he know about the GIW?  "I- I mean usually I can sense when another ghost is close by, and you feel like a ghost does. Sort of. I was curious, so I m-may have followed you, but I’m on your side. Obviously, you can sense me or something and I can um, sense you so I mean, I was wondering why you feel like a ghost. Sort of."

"What do you mean sort of?" Red Hood grunted, cutting off Danny’s panicked rambling and holstering his gun, but not relaxing. The glowing green eyes of the ghost kid did nothing to reassure Jason of anything good. "And what the fuck do you mean about ghosts?"

Danny floated closer, squinting at Hood, and getting a feel for the ectoplasm inside him. It felt... corrupted in a way. Like the Ring of Rage."Oh, um. Well, I'm a ghost," Danny said, straightening himself. He didn't offer to shake hands, because he knew the other vigilante's didn't like it. He was way colder in his ghost form and it unsettled a lot of people. Tucker in particular hated it when he shoved his cold ghost hands under the geek’s shirt. "You can call me Phantom."

"Red Hood," The guy grunted, still suspicious, but Danny couldn't blame him. Meeting a ghost for the first time was always kinda disorienting.

"Right, explanation. So, I was haunting Nightwing- which, okay that sounds bad but he uh, he knows about it. Um, I mean he knows about me, sort of," Danny clarified, glancing at the Hood’s stiff posture." We race sometimes. And I don’t haunt him all the time. Um. Only when I see him on the roofs and stuff."

Red Hood crossed his arms, willing the kid- Was he a kid? He looked younger than the Replacement- to get on with the story. He was curious and on edge about how the ghost kid could tell he was.. not fully alive. And the fact that he could escape "Uh, right. So when he met with you I sort of sensed you were sort of like me, so I followed you because I was confused and worried about how you-"

"What do you mean like you?" Red Hood said, stepping forward menacingly, which didn't seem to phase the kid who was floating several feet in the air. Right, he was a ghost. How the heck would he be able to fight a ghost, he wondered. Maybe he’d call up Constantine after this. If he survived. 

"I mean it feels like you have ectoplasm in you, but it’s… different. All ghosts and Halfas have a core, but… I don't think you have one," He muttered, squinting at Jason's chest. When he floated closer Jason just took a step back. Danny held up his hands in surrender, backing off before the gun-toting vigilante decided to shoot him. It was just intriguing to meet a sort-of halfa. 

"A core?" Jason asked, staring at the kids glowing white hair that moved like he was underwater. He'd started to realize this was just a kid, probably just curious about why Jason felt similar to him. But where did Phantom come from? What was a ghost kid doing haunting Gotham of all places? Actually, Jason could think of a lot of reasons why someone would haunt Gotham. He figured he might as well get some useful information out of the kid, but it was unlikely that the kid meant any harm. Just…a curious kid, Jason decided. Still. It was weird.

"Right,"The kid said, putting a hand to his chin. Jason wondered if he'd ever had to explain this to anyone else before. Did the kid know any other ghosts like him? It was a sad thought. Was this kid all alone in his afterlife? Jason thought maybe Bruce would be happy to adopt a lonely ghost kid to forever haunt the manor. "Um, so every ghost has a core, it’s like their heart. Halfas are like ghosts, because they have a core, but they also have a heart, and stuff like that cuz they're half human. Cores are sustained by ectoplasm. You though, you don't have a core, so you aren't a halfa or a ghost, but you have ectoplasm. I'm not sure why."

Red Hood was silent for a moment before answering,"I do."

“You- you know how you got all that ectoplasm? Cause it's not the good kind," Danny asked with wide eyes, then wrinkled his nose. "It smells angry." He squinted, making Jason snort.

"Yeah." Hood grunted. That’s an understatement. "I died, but was brought back using the Lazarus pits. Basically a pit of toxic green water."

"Huh." Danny shifted, coming closer to examine the angry ectoplasm a bit more. He was in awe of how close Red Hood allowed him to get. He could see a bit of a green tinge in the air around Hood, and poked at it gently, making the Hood stiffen, but the vigilante didn’t move away."The green water- sludge, whatevers, we call it ectoplasm. It um. It can be other things, not just water, but yeah. The stuff around you sounds, and feels, like some form of corrupted ectoplasm. Usually it's all in the Ghost zone- a sort of different dimension for ghosts, but sometimes there's thin spots in the barrier between worlds so some ghosts or ectoplasm can get through."The ghost explained, then added with a thoughtful expression,"I'll have to talk to the ancients about those pits, probably not safe for humans to be falling into it all the time."

The last comment made Jason hum in agreement, silently reeling about a different realm filled with ghosts and lazarus energy, but wondered if giving this kid info about the pits was really a good idea or not. Red Hood kept an eye on the ghost kid the whole time, fingers itching for his guns while the kid scrutinized him. His nerves almost got the best of him a few times with the kid staring at him so intently. Maybe this was a bad idea. He could feel the kid’s presence, and if he was telling the truth then that meant the kid was also a part of the Lazarus pits in some way. His hand went for his gun, when the kid suddenly straightened up. "Well, since you're not a Halfa or anything, want me to get rid of it for you?"

"What," Jason snapped, narrowing his eyes. Get rid of the Pit rage? Could it be that easy? Why now of all times did this tiny ghost kid come along and try to fix all his problems? Was it a trap? Jason thought, considering.

"I mean, I've never done it before, but all ghosts can kind of control ectoplasm to an extent," Phantom said, holding his hand out, which was now glowing with green, as an example. Jason stared at the collection of green in the kid’s hand, and he felt… strangely at ease with it. Unlike the green from the pits, this was lighter somehow. Not angry. And a lighter green. "Mine is not corrupted though, so it probably feels different."

And it did. Jason didn't get that same feeling he got when he encountered anything pit-related. He could tell they were similar, but not. Phantom's green was.. calmer. "I can try to draw out the grumpy ectoplasm-"

“We are not calling it that,"Jason cut in, and the kid smirked at him in a way that reminded him of his brothers. Jason felt taken aback at how easy it was to banter with the weird ghost kid. He shrugged off the weird feelings and went back to business.  "No. We’re not. What would you do with it when you have it all?"

That question seemed to stump the kid. Jason squined, half convinced the kid was going to do something dangerous with it but instead of that, the kid just looked as confused as Jason as he started to ramble. "I dunno. It probably would taste pretty gross, but I don’t have a portal to the zone to toss it into either. I mean maybe I could find a natural portal. Maybe put it in a jar? It might get out though. I guess I could freeze it? Ghost ice doesn't melt. You could keep it around as a paperweight or something." Phantom shrugged, and the idea thrown out there that his constant rage could be filtered out of his body to be made into a paperweight was so damn strange that Jason knew there was probably no way this was a trap. Phantom was just a well meaning, too curious, kind of dumb kid.

“A paperweight,”Jason deadpanned. 

“I-I mean I can try to make it into a sculpture?” Phantom winced,”I’m not great at making anything other than spheres. I can try though? If you want a.. Prettier paperweight?”

Jason stared at the kid a moment in exasperation. “No. A sphere is. Fine.” Jason huffed. “So you’re taking the pit rage-”

“Grumpy ectoplasm,”Phantom cut in helpfully. Jason ignored him.

“-and freezing it in a sphere of ice that will never melt in order to contain it forever, and giving it to me as a paperweight,”Jason finished, trying to wrap his head around the ridiculousness of everything. 

“Yea,” Phantom finger-gunned. Jason sighed. 

"Alright,"Jason shrugged, opening his arms a bit. "Do your worst." He said before he had time to regret it. This was probably way against Bat protocol, especially since he didn’t know where the kid came from or anything about him, but Jason was curious. Plus, if Nightwing spent time racing the kid in his freetime then he couldn’t be too bad. Probably. And he may be getting his hopes up a bit. No way would Batman let him exchange trauma for a paperweight in an alley with the ghost of a child. Batman never let him do anything fun. 

"Nice! Okay hold still-"Phantom said, dropping to stand the ground, which surprised Jason because he could see the kid actually had legs now. Seeing legs instead of weird wisps of a tail was strange, but oddly made sense, and he noticed the kid was wearing some sort of hazmat suit with absolutely zero protection. He watched with suspicion as he held his palms out to Jason, but not touching, and closed his eyes. The kid took a breath- do ghosts breathe?- before Jason started to see this dark green mist start to waft off of him and collect vaguely in the kid's hands.

Jason startled, about to move away when he felt a weight lift off his shoulders. He felt... lighter. The green haze that seemed to always be at the edge of his vision receded, and Jason almost felt... relieved. He didn't realize how suffocating all that rage was until it was gone. It very nearly drove him to tears. For the first time in forever he just felt… calm. Like he was taking a breath of fresh air after a lifetime of pollution. 

 "Aaand done!" Phantom exclaimed,and Jason had a feeling that Phantom would be doing jazz hands if he wasn’t holding.. Something. The kid was holding a menacing swirling mist of green in between his hands like a giant marble. He focused again for a moment before Jason felt a chill to the air, and suddenly there was a blue sphere in the kids hands, the inside a swirly green color suspense within the sparkling ice. 

"Here,"Phantom offered, giving him the sphere of Jason's pit rage before the vigilante could say anything. Jason looked at it a few moments with apprehension before shrugging. He'd have a breakdown about this later, he was sure, and pocketed the now paperweight in one of his pouches. The weight of it was not comforting in the least, and part of him wanted to throw it into the harbor as soon as he got a chance. He didn’t though. Yet. "I think I got all of it, but if you start feeling it again come find me. I’ll probably be around Nightwing or something. You feel okay, right?"

Pushing aside Jason's questions of how the hell was he supposed to find an invisible ghost kid in Gotham of all places, he nodded. "Y-yeah. Thanks."

"No problem," Phantom waved, once again floating into the air, only this time sitting criss-cross applesauce. Jason sort of thought he might be dreaming. Might as well try to get some answers though, he thought. “And it won’t melt or break. Unless, like, I get killed as a ghost or something but it might not melt at that either.” 

"Why would you help me? Why would you tell me about any of this at all?" Jason asked, leaning against the wall. He felt exhausted all of a sudden, and elected to ignore Phantom’s comment about something possibly killing him as a ghost. Whether it be from the emotional whiplash or from having ecto-whatever pulled from his body, he didn't know. Still, he didn’t regret letting the kid turn his trauma into a paperweight. He had a passing thought about whether this meant he’d die without the ectoplasm, but honestly didn’t care over the relief of it being gone for good. 

"’Cause you seemed like you needed help. And I didn't have any when I became,"Phantom trailed off, and Jason winced when he gestured to himself. "It can be scary,"He continued in a softer tone. "Having to get used to new powers and stuff."

Jason shivered, and felt a pang in his chest that the kid had probably died at that age. Phantom looked younger than Tim, who was fifteen. "You mentioned Halfas? Are they common?" Jason asked, suddenly aware of a possible new threat. People who were more half-dead than Jason and possibly had powers like the ghost in front of him. "How come I haven't heard of them or ghosts like you before?"

"Nah," Phantom said, still quiet. "There's only three Halfas that I know of. And you probably wouldn't know about any of us, since we're all usually in hiding." Especially right now, Danny thought. 

"Why? Wouldn't halfas be like metas? They’d have protection." Jason asked, and Phantom could hear concern and confusion in his voice, despite the voice modifier.

Phantom shook his head, white hair swishing gently in the ghostly atmosphere, and Jason noticed pointy ears."Halfas fall under the Anti-ecto Acts according to your government. Anything with ectoplasm isn't classified as human, or sentient, and the Ghost Investigation Ward is able to hunt down and experiment on them,"The ghost shivered. "That's why I was confused about you. And worried, cause exposure to ectoplasm isn’t usually planned and can be difficult to get used to without help from a ghost.. I wasn't sure if you'd be at risk if the GIW found out about you.  They have… sort of a way to track ectoplasm. If they knew about you they’d…" Phantom trailed off, but Jason got the picture. 

"Oh,"Jason breathed. This went a hell of a lot deeper than he thought it did. And Jason could have just been taken and experimented on at any point before this and it would be legally allowed? Yikes. He needed to do more research on this for sure. "You mentioned a ghost zone?"

"Oh, yeah," Phantom waved nonchalantly. "It’s also called the Infinite Realms. Houses all the ghosts, ruled by the ghost king, blah, blah. It's been a while since I've been back, but the whole thing is made up of ectoplasm. Usually there’s weak spots that can act as a portal between the two worlds, but some ghosts have the ability to create portals. As far as I know only three ghosts in the Zone where I’m from can do that. There’s also man-made portals, where people from this realm sort of…poke holes? Into the Ghost Zone. It’s usually a pretty bad idea."Phantom added, rubbing the back of his neck. "Some ghosts can be kinda dangerous. Or ghosts who want to be left alone fall through and get trapped here. They all have their own obsessions to follow and sometimes humans can get hurt. Or the ghost hunters take the ghosts for experiments, try to kill them, stuff like that."

Jason thought for a moment, letting the info-dump process in his mind a bit before a thought came to mind. "Do you know where the Halfas are? How did they become half-ghosts?" He asked, to which Phantom inclined his head, but said nothing.

"If they're hiding from this shady government organization, I can help,"Jason argued, and Phantom shook his head stiffly. "Isn't there anything you can tell me about them?"

"If you go after the GIW, you might not come back,"Phantom warned. "They don't just exterminate ghosts, they use them to make weapons or power sources. It's dangerous, and they don't know halfas exist yet." Danny hoped so at least. His own parents thought he was just being possessed by Phantom, so there was a good chance they weren't aware of them yet. "I'd like to keep it that way. It’s safer for them if no one knows they exist. They know how to hide. They have protection. They’ll be fine."

Hood sighed, feeling the weight of his rage in his pocket. He was sure he’d have his gun out at this point if he’d still had all that rage inside him. Now he just felt kind of exhausted. He’d look into this shady organization no matter what the kid said though. Even if there were only three half-humans out there, they didn’t deserve to be hunted. Hell, even ghosts like this kid didn’t deserve to be hunted. Maybe if the Bats could get into contact with the ghost king then they can come up with some sort of truce between both realms. 

”Alright. Fine,"Jason grumbled. "I'll look into it and see if I can't get it shut down.” Phantom froze up, so Jason quickly added,”Don't worry, I won't mention any of your secrets to anyone. I won't pry about the halfas either,"He sighed again, thinking of how this was probably a job for Batman. It's possible Tim already is semi-aware of it at least, Jason figured. 

Jason wondered if Phantom in Gotham meant one or more of the halfas were hiding here, and he was just keeping an eye out for them. Was the kid protecting the halfa’s here? Were there other ghosts around doing the same? It seemed like something the kid might do. "Just, keep the halfas and ghosts safe, and stay out of trouble."

"Aye aye," Phantom saluted, before disappearing into the night. Jason paused, no longer able to feel the ghost's presence when he went invisible. Jason reached into his pocket, feeling the smooth cold surface of the pit rage. 

What a weird night, he thought.

Chapter 3

[lolaandthens0me]

Hey Lola! I love your posts and content! I gotta ask this: What has your Poly Journey looked like for you, and is there anything that I should be mindful of within my own journey?

Salutations Anon! And thank you for the kind words.

Wow, what a fantastic question! It has been quite the journey filled with much love, some heartache, an abundance of patience and growth, and real hard work in self-awareness and compassion...along with more than a smattering of fun, fuckery, and so.much.travel.

My journey began with a quiet aching within my heart and unsettledness within my gut. I think I've always known that I was polyamorous and bisexual, but I've not always had the vocabulary to express that. I am a being with an extraordinary capacity to love, and although I had so much love within my marriage (and still share with my ex), my heart was calling for more. There came a time where I felt that if I didn't make a change, the real person I was inside was going to be gone forever. The part that makes me Lola. I believe that I was put on this Earth to love, to share my body, and to share my heart and empathy in order to help others learn how to heal and love themselves.

The first step was to learn how to communicate honestly, even if it meant hurting someone I loved. I read books and blogs about how to be an active communicator instead of a passive one. And then I practiced. I surrounded myself with wonderful friends who listened, pushed me to speak my truth, and helped me figure out just what is was that I felt I was missing, I was being called to pursue, and they supported me, every step of the way, in who I was becoming.

Then I had to learn how to ask for what I want. This is a lesson that I continue to relay to all of my friends and partners. I have learned how to compassionately, but confidently and with kindness, ask specifically for what I want. One way that I continue to do this is by being very upfront about who I am and what kind of life/relationships I want with any potential play partner/kinky friend/partner...the people that I want to be my whole, true, unedited self with.

I also had to do the hard thing. After months and months of therapy, couple's therapy, open, honest conversations, time spent alone and together, trials of compromise and an open relationship to a degree - I had to say that I wanted to separate. I was married for almost 15 years at this point. That was one of the hardest days of my life. But I felt caged, frail, like the color was being completely drained from me. They say that it takes a good 2 years after a separation/dissolution/divorce to get your life back to something normal again. I have not quite made it to that mark yet...but I believe that's true. My ex and I chose to rewrite a new chapter for our relationship, to write our own book, to remain friends and in each other's lives...and wow, has that been hard. But I am so fucking grateful and happy that we've done that work. And we are in a wholly different, beautiful place.

Now for the fun, but also tricky part...I began forming new relationships. I think I've always known that I would be someone who would want and thrive with a Primary partner. I was lucky, my Primary partner, RY, was a friend first, and grew very organically and beautifully into more than that. We both made a promise to each other very early on that we would keep checking in and evaluating the health of ourselves, our processes of getting over a breakup, and the state and wellbeing of our relationship as it blossomed and grew into what it is today. As long as we were both still growing individually and encouraging each other into happy and healthy people, then we would continue growing our relationship. We communicate openly and honestly about everything, we have been patient in allowing one another the space to mourn the loss of our marriages with empathy, and we have taken our time to rebuild ourselves, bringing our best selves to each other. It worked out that he also was looking to explore polyamory. We're both still new at this, but we talk about and work through every growing pain along the way.

Then along came my other partner. She and I had a connection right away. Our close friendship naturally grew into something more. She and my primary partner were also friends, and honestly, I think that really helps. It is just amazing to see the two of them talk and laugh and genuinely enjoy being around each other, and they both reach out to one another in their love for me. I was always clear about who RY was to me and what our relationship was, and so that helped lay the foundation for my second relationship. I check in a lot with her to make sure that she feels loved, seen, and heard, and that we have enough time in person together. It's fantastic that we can be things and do things with one another that just simply don't fit into our other relationships.

I have learned what my boundaries are (and the fact that I actually need boundaries) within myself to ensure that I remain intact and wholly my own, as well as a giving, loving, deeply connected partner. It was important for me to live by myself right now, not something I've ever done before. I made this choice for the past year because I know my codependent tendencies and I wanted to break out of that mold. I still struggle sometimes with not giving all of my energy to those I love. I must save some for myself and I have found ways to replenish that energy. Time and energy; I'm still learning how to balance these within a polyamorous life.

I continue to work on approaching every conversation with empathy and an open mind and heart. I continue to keep searching within myself and bring that self-awareness to my relationships. I continue to push myself to see a different way and live a different way. I continue to surround myself with open-minded people that see me, know me, support me, and love me in this new life I'm creating. I continue to take time to be by myself and breathe. I continue to search out new opportunities that challenge me and fulfill me. I continue to be a student of life. And I continue to lean into love.

I love you @resonantyes and @hbananer - thank you for this life.